In the budget deliberation yesterday during the 20th session of the Legislative Council (LegCo) meeting, Minister of Education Yang Berhormat Datin Seri Setia Dr Hajah Romaizah binti Haji Mohd Salleh on behalf of the Ministry of Education (MoE) and its departments presented their highest gratitude to His Majesty Sultan Haji Hassanal Bolkiah Mu’izzaddin Waddaulah ibni Al-Marhum Sultan Haji Omar ‘Ali Saifuddien Sa’adul Khairi Waddien, Sultan and Yang Di-Pertuan of Brunei Darussalam’s Government for the trust and support in allocating a total provision of BND810,383,636 for the 2024-2025 financial year.
The minister said BND549,176,850, or 68 per cent of the budget will go to emolument for 12,580 teaching and non-teaching staff. Meanwhile, BND221,997,500 will cover recurrent expenditure and BND39,209,286 for developmental expenditure.
The minister said to ensure comprehensive education planning across all levels, the MoE’s strategic plan for 2023-2027 focuses on three main goals.
“First, cultivating future-ready students by enhancing their skills and capabilities to navigate an ever-changing landscape.
“Secondly, enhancing the innovative education ecosystem by ensuring robust and relevant educational practices in generating new solutions.
“Thirdly, build the human resource capacity by providing professional training based on high ethical standards.”
The minister also highlighted the establishment of the first special school in January 2024 to cater to students with special needs. She also shared that last year’s Primary School Assessment (PSR) results show a 15-per-cent improvement, with 61.3 per cent, or 2,110 candidates, obtaining grades A-C in all five subjects.
For last year’s Brunei-Cambridge GCE ‘O’ Level and IGCSE examinations, she said, 41.11 per cent, or 1,687 candidates, achieved at least five credits. Despite a slight decrease in performance compared to 2022, the minister believes the results reflect a consistent upward trend over the past decade.
For last year’s Brunei-Cambridge GCE ‘A’ Level examinations, she shared that 68.03 per cent, or 1,032 candidates, attained at least three ‘A’ levels, a decrease compared to 2022.However, the number of candidates achieving at least a grade A-C in one subject increased from 920 in 2022 to 990 in 2023.
Meanwhile, the number of candidates achieving at least a grade A-E in one subject increased from 1,320 in 2022 to 1,430 in 2023. – Adib Noor
