Education, skills programmes rolled out for armed forces families
Defence Minister Datuk Seri Mohamed Khaled Nordin said these initiatives were introduced to ensure the well-being of armed forces personnel, focusing not only on assets but also on education and skills for their families.
"The first initiative is the e-Perkasa Sijil Pelajaran Malaysia (SPM) 2025 Programme, a collaboration between Yayasan LTAT and Sultan Idris Education University, involving 652 students who are children of armed forces personnel attending schools outside military camps.
"Through this programme, each selected student has been provided with a device for free, sponsored by BHIC AeroServices Sdn Bhd, Boustead Petroleum Marketing Sdn Bhd and the Malaysian Armed Forces Trading Corporation," he said at the launch of Yayasan LTAT's 2025 Educational Initiatives.
Khaled said the second initiative is the SPM Elite Touch Programme, which involves 658 selected students from six in-camp schools. The students will benefit from activities such as tuition classes, answering technique workshops and career guidance programmes.
"The third initiative is the Armed Forces Family Skills Programme, which extends education and skills development to the tertiary level for armed forces personnel, including members of the Armed Forces Family Welfare Association and their children. The programme offers 22 short courses, including culinary arts and make-up.
"Those pursuing studies in Mara institutions in the field of technical and vocational education and training or equivalent will receive tuition sponsorship of up to RM3,000 per person. This is a collaboration between Yayasan LTAT and the Polytechnic Education and Community Colleges Department, with funding support from Pharmaniaga Bhd as the main sponsor," he said.
The fourth initiative, Khaled said, is the Madani Education Savings Programme, a collaboration between Yayasan LTAT and the National Higher Education Fund Corporation.
"Through this programme, 3,775 Year One pupils, who are children of active military personnel, received a one-off contribution of RM50 each in the form of an SSPN Prime savings account, amounting to a total contribution of RM188,750," he said.
The fifth initiative is the Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) Programme, where Yayasan LTAT has formed a strategic partnership with Talent Corporation Malaysia Bhd (TalentCorp) and Universiti Sains Malaysia (USM).
"TalentCorp will help boost awareness about the importance of STEM and provide career guidance, while USM will develop STEM learning modules and act as a coordinator with public universities to implement this programme in in-camp schools."
Khaled witnessed the presentation of corporate social responsibility contributions amounting to RM3.2 million from Affin Bank Bhd, BHPetrol and Kemalak Group Sdn Bhd to strengthen the future of the defence generation.
Present were Deputy Defence Minister Adly Zahari, Armed Forces chief General Tan Sri Mohd Nizam Jaffar, Defence Ministry Secretary-General Datuk Lokman Hakim Ali, LTAT chairman General (Rtd) Tan Sri Azizan Ariffin, army chief General Tan Sri Muhammad Hafizuddeain Jantan and Yayasan LTAT chief executive Datuk Dr Mohd Nizar Sudin.
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