The Ministry of Education has recorded over 350,000 applications for Year One admission at age six for the 2027 intake, reflecting strong parental confidence in the system.
KUALA LUMPUR: Applications for Year One admission at the age of six have received a highly positive response from parents for the 2027 intake.
Deputy Education Minister Wong Kah Woh revealed that data as of yesterday showed a total of 351,789 applications had been recorded, which includes 51,457 children currently aged five.
He stated that this strong uptake reflects the confidence of parents in their children’s readiness as well as the breadth of the system introduced by the ministry.
To support this admission drive, the government plans to enhance access to preschool education by expanding facilities across various educational institutions.
The expansion will see new preschool classes added in primary schools, secondary schools, vocational colleges, matriculation colleges and Teacher Education Institutes (IPG).
Currently, there are 10,514 preschool classes operating within 6,469 institutions across the country, according to official data.
The government has planned to add 150 new preschool classes in 2025 and another 350 in 2026 to meet the growing demand.
This expansion will bring the total government preschool capacity to 256,894 places, with current enrolment standing at 217,041 pupils.
In a separate winding-up speech, Women, Family and Community Development Deputy Minister Lim Hui Ying highlighted the success of women’s economic empowerment programmes.
She said 10,651 participants had benefited from 70 such programmes since the beginning of this year.
Last year, a total of 824 programmes were carried out, involving 31,025 participants nationwide, including the flagship Income Generation Skills Programme.
This flagship programme aims to guide women in acquiring the knowledge and skills necessary to manage and expand their own businesses effectively.
Since its implementation from 2022 to 2025, a total of 1,158 participants have been trained through this initiative.
Participants in the Income Generation Skills Programme have reported an average monthly income increase of between RM1,000 and RM1,500.
 The Sun Malaysia
