The Sabah government is proposing state scholarships for students pursuing Kadazandusun language studies at universities to boost teacher supply and preserve the indigenous language.

PENAMPANG: The Sabah government is proposing to extend state scholarships to students pursuing Kadazandusun language studies at the tertiary level.

Deputy Chief Minister III Datuk Ewon Benedick described the move as a strategic initiative to encourage more students into the field and ensure a sufficient supply of qualified language teachers for state schools.

“I will bring this proposal to the Chief Minister, Datuk Seri Hajiji Noor, and the Sabah Cabinet,” he told reporters after officiating a World Mother Language Day event here.

He stated he would raise the matter at the Cabinet meeting next week to enable scholarships for students at Teacher Training Institutes and universities offering the programme.

The Kadazandusun language is already part of Sabah’s school curriculum at primary and secondary levels and is a subject in the Sijil Pelajaran Malaysia examination.

Ewon also welcomed pilot projects to expand teaching through new ethnic language modules like Kadazan Tangaa and Murut Timogun.

“I will continue to engage in discussions with the federal government, and I am confident that this can be implemented,” he said.

The event saw the launch of the Kadazan–English–Malay Webonary, a digital vocabulary project, and the presentation of the Tan Sri Bernard Dompok Literary Award.

Ewon, who is also Sabah Minister of Industrial Development, approved an allocation of RM150,000 for language preservation programmes.

The funding will support the Kadazandusun Language Foundation and the Sabah Ethnic Language Association in developing educational materials for the new language modules.

 The Sun Malaysia