FEBRUARY 25 — The recent meeting of Education Minister Maszlee Malik with the senior management of the private education sector gives encouragement to this sector. The National Association of Private Educational Institutions (NAPEI) has been at the forefront in taking the issues faced by private higher education institutions which was well received by the minister. Subsequently, the meeting he had with the NAPEI council to further understand the problems gives greater confidence that we are on the forward path.
NAPEI thanks the minister for listening and taking positive steps in directing the ministry to ensure that equal attention is given to an industry that has contributed significantly to the education of the Malaysian populace. We feel that if the ministry carries out all that the minister envisaged during his “Majlis Perjumpaan Khas” with the private institutions, the industry can and will help the minister position Malaysia back as one of the leading destinations for international students wanting a world class education in the region.
NAPEI encourages the call for a more autonomous environment, where education must be relevant and industry-driven. The private education industry has over the years tried its level best to provide industry-driven courses that employers want of their employees.
However, because of the need to comply with too many approval channels, the programmes conducted have become generic and sometimes outdated, because of the length of time taken for approvals.
One of the greatest setbacks currently is the overregulation and ad hoc policies that hinder the sustainability of the private education sector. Smaller colleges that are “healthy” should be allowed to operate as usual. We hope that with the forthcoming revamp and greater involvement of the stakeholders, these issues would be a matter of the past.
NAPEI would like to suggest that an RIA (Regulatory Impact Analysis) be carried out before any regulation is imposed. Most often these regulations have a greater impact on the economy and socio-economy of the country.
As NAPEI membership includes language centres, pre-schools and international and private schools, the minister’s recognition of edu-tourism, proposed by NAPEI, is most encouraging as it would further add value to Malaysia becoming an education hub. As for private schools, a proposed engagement meeting of the minister with the stakeholders is most welcome and provides greater hope for its enhancement.
NAPEI is looking forward to working with the ministry to contribute to the development of a new education roadmap and thus taking Malaysian education to greater heights.
* Associate Prof Elajsolan Mohan is President of NAPEI.
** This is the personal opinion of the writer or publication and does not necessarily represent the views of Malay Mail.
