Malaysia Ministry of Education scraps Bumiputera equity rule for private schools

Malaysia’s Ministry of Education (MOE) has removed the requirement for private limited companies operating private education institutions (IPS) to maintain a minimum 30 percent Bumiputera equity ownership. The decision follows discussions between the MOE and the Ministry of Investment, Trade and Industry (MITI).

The previous requirement, established in a 2006 policy statement, is being replaced to better reflect the current needs of the education sector and to ensure the industry remains open to all contributors to the country’s educational development.

Former deputy education minister P Kamalanathan welcomed the decision, describing it as the right move for Malaysian education. However, he has called on the ministry to provide written confirmation and update its official guidelines to clarify whether the change applies to both new applications and existing centres seeking license renewals. Kamalanathan suggested that tuition centres should be evaluated based on teacher quality, student safety, and learning outcomes rather than ethnic shareholding composition.