THE government has allocated RM800 million under Budget 2027 to replace and upgrade residential colleges and hostel facilities at public universities nationwide, as it steps up efforts to address student accommodation shortages.
Higher Education Minister Datuk Seri Zambry Abd Kadir said the latest allocation would continue efforts to improve student welfare, particularly for those from the B40 lower-income group.
He said five new residential colleges were also being planned at public higher education institutions, using the public-private partnership model, with capacity for 21,000 students.
From 2021 to 2025, the government allocated RM1.1 billion to replace and upgrade ageing equipment and infrastructure, including residential colleges and hostels at public universities.
During the same period, the ministry spent RM225 million from development funds to repair and upgrade existing hostels.
Zambry said 15 new residential college projects under public-private partnerships had been completed, providing accommodation for about 45,000 students.
The ministry was also working with government-linked investment companies (GLICs) to improve the implementation of residential college and hostel construction projects.
One example is a residential project at Universiti Malaya (UM), launched by the Prime Minister recently, which is designed to accommodate 10,000 students and is expected to be fully completed by 2031.
Under Budget 2027, the government has also allocated RM750 million for the Vista Kampus project at Universiti Sultan Zainal Abidin (UniSZA) and Universiti Teknologi MARA (UiTM), with plans to expand the initiative to other public universities.
Zambry was responding in the Dewan Rakyat to a question from Datuk Seri Dr Wan Azizah Wan Ismail (PH-Bandar Tun Razak) on measures to address the shortage of residential college places, particularly for B40 students. - October 26, 2026