THE Education (Amendment) Bill 2025, which makes secondary education compulsory, was tabled for first reading in the Dewan Rakyat today.
Deputy Minister of Education, Wong Kah Woh, when tabling the Bill said that the second and third readings are expected to be held in this sitting to ensure that the amendments can be approved as soon as possible.
The Bill proposes amendments to the Education Act 1996 (Act 550) including expanding the definition of compulsory education to the secondary level which was previously limited to primary education.
“Through this amendment, Section 2 of Act 550 will be amended to include secondary education as part of compulsory education.
“The amendment to Section 29A(2) stipulates that parents are responsible for ensuring that their children are registered in primary school as early as the age of six and remain in school until the end of the compulsory education period,” he said.
In addition, the same bill also introduces Section 32A, which empowers the Minister of Education to designate secondary education as compulsory, make certain exceptions, and enact regulations for its implementation.
The section also provides for penalties for parents who fail to register their children for secondary schools as a measure to ensure compliance with the law.
“The full implementation of this proposal is expected to involve additional government expenditure, but the exact amount of the cost has yet to be determined at this time,” he added. – July 28, 2025
