Studying on empty, university students wait for Budget 2027

KUALA LUMPUR: The financial strain on university students, including those forced into debt to cover the cost of their studies, will be addressed in Budget 2027, Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim said.

He made the remarks at the Youth Economic Forum 2026 at the Kuala Lumpur Convention Centre on Saturday, citing complaints from students who wanted to study but did not have enough to eat.

"Students say, we want to study but we are hungry. We will focus on this, and I will announce it in the budget," he said, according to the RTM news portal.

Anwar said the country had enough resources to help them, provided they were managed without waste or corruption.

He did not, however, give details of the form of assistance, eligibility or the amount to be allocated.

Free tuition is not enough

The cost of living for students is not a new concern. Last month, Universiti Sains Malaysia (USM) vice-chancellor Professor Datuk Seri Abdul Rahman Mohamed said some students from B40 households were getting by on one meal a day throughout their studies.

Tuition fee waivers alone were not enough, he said, because students still had to pay for food and daily necessities.

"While at university, apart from fees, they need to eat and clothe themselves every day," he said at the time.

The pressure typically comes from a handful of costs students bear themselves: food, rent for those living off campus, transport and learning materials, including mobile data.

For students from low-income families, those costs are often covered through education loans, part-time work or limited help from home.

Waiting for the details

Anwar had earlier said Budget 2027 would be tabled in early October. His latest remarks signal that student welfare will be among its priorities.

Whether the measures work will depend on how help is delivered: direct cash to students, subsidised campus meals, restructured loans, or a combination.

The target group also needs to be defined, including whether aid will be limited to B40 students or extended to M40 students, who are ineligible for most existing assistance but are also squeezed by the cost of living.

Those details are expected when the budget is tabled in the Dewan Rakyat.