SIBU: The Sarawak Government is prepared to allocate RM715 million annually to provide free education for 25,000 ‘anak Sarawak’ in all state-owned universities and higher learning institutions, aiming to bolster nation-building efforts.
Deputy Premier Datuk Amar Dr Sim Kui Hian said the initiative is crucial for nurturing the talent and workforce required for the state’s development.
“In 10 years’ time, we will have 250,000 ‘anak-anak Sarawak’ contributing to nation-building. We can produce RM715 million a year, but next year we will still need another RM715 million. If we focus on nation-building, we can generate more revenue,” he said.
Dr Sim said this when officiating the Sibu Municipal Council (SMC) Chinese New Year (CNY) open house at Tun Abdul Taib Mahmud Chancellor’s Hall, University of Technology Sarawak here today (Feb 17).
The Public Health, Housing, and Local Government Minister stressed that the state is gearing up to double its GDP from RM140 billion last year to RM282 billion in 2030 as targeted under the Post-Covid Development Strategy 2030 (PCDS 2030).
“For 60 years, our gross domestic product (GDP) was only RM171 billion. However, in the next six years, our expected GDP will be RM282 billion (according to PCDS 2030), which is RM110 billion more. It took 60 years for us to achieve only RM171 billion. We have to work together to achieve this.
“Now we have many things we want to do for development, but the most important thing is nation-building,” he stressed.
Dr Sim also urged Sarawakian to return and contribute to the state.
“Your home is here. We do something for our home that’s what we call nation building,” he concluded.
