Nelson Mandela once said, “EDUCATION is the most powerful weapon which you can use to change the world.”
Education is a process of receiving or giving systematic instruction. Education is a pattern that co-exist across the continent, culture & human civilization.
Education is the process of facilitating learning. We acquire new knowledge, skills, values, beliefs and habits are through education. It transferred knowledge from one person to another. It is very natural and necessary process. In fact, it is a centre to our ability to not only survive but thrive and flourish.
Education is something people fight to have access to.
Education makes people move around to make closer to. Education is something that people save their entire life to pay for it. Education is something that we think it is important to secure the great job. And in my case and may be perhaps many of you in this audience, education is also something that people build in entire of their life.
Education is the one pillar that cannot be absent in nation building. It is, to many, the most important foundation in a country’s social and economic development. Thus, with all these importance and virtues, can it be viewed as an industry?
Malaysia has evolved from a production-based to knowledge-based economy in order to stay relevant and compete in the global marketplace. The private education sector has been supplementing and complementing the government in providing education for more than 80 years.
Based on current data, more than 53% of preschool education is provided by private operator and 51 per cent of post-secondary education is provided by private higher education institutions, saving the government billions of ringgit in expenditure in education.
According to Malay Mail, 24 January 2019 which reported private education contributes to the economy of the country in the range of RM50 billion.
Although some may argue that we cannot put a price on knowledge or education, we cannot deny the fact that the education sector, especially private education, is contributing to the country’s economic growth.
A report by the Department of Statistics Malaysia showed that contribution of Gross Domestic Products from private education has steadily increased since 2015 to 2018. This is a growth of value of roughly 7.7% annually.
However, there is a study shows that the private education sector is becoming a sunset industry. It is said that many institutions are facing massive losses due to reduced student enrolment and some in the process of closure.
Why does this happen?
Please read my notes on this in next blog post.