The Tunku Abdul Rahman Foundation () is a

non-profit A nonprofit organization (NPO), also known as a nonbusiness entity, nonprofit institution, not-for-profit organization, or simply a nonprofit, is a non-governmental (private) legal entity organized and operated for a collective, public, or so ...

public foundation incorporated by an Act of Parliament in 1966. The primary aim of the foundation is to recognise and encourage the development of youths who show excellence in both academic and

extra-curricular An extracurricular activity (ECA) or extra academic activity (EAA) or cultural activity is an activity, performed by students, that falls outside the realm of the normal curriculum of school, college or university education. Although approved a ...

pursuits through the provision of scholarships for higher education.

History

On the occasion of the 63rd birthday of the first

Prime Minister of Malaysia The prime minister of Malaysia (; ) is the head of government of Malaysia. The prime minister directs the executive branch of the Government of Malaysia, federal government. The Yang di-Pertuan Agong appoints the prime minister who is a membe ...

Tunku Abdul Rahman Tunku Abdul Rahman (8 February 19036 December 1990), commonly referred to as Tunku, was a Malaysian statesman who served as prime minister of Malaysia from 1957 to 1970. He previously served as the only chief minister of Federation of Malaya ...

, on 8 February 1966, the

Malay language Malay ( , ; , Jawi alphabet, Jawi: ) is an Austronesian languages, Austronesian language spoken primarily by Malays (ethnic group), Malays in several islands of Maritime Southeast Asia and the Malay Peninsula on the mainland Asia. The lang ...

newspaper, Utusan Melayu, launched a fund-raising exercise to set up a proposed education fund to provide for the higher education of Malay youths. Initially named the Tunku Abdul Rahman Education Fund (), it gained the support of a broad segment of Malaysian society. As a result, the federal government of Malaysia decided to formally establish a national foundation and open the fund to Malaysian applicants regardless of their ethnicity or creed. This was made possible with the passage of the ''Tunku Abdul Rahman Foundation Fund Act 1966'' by Parliament on 28 July 1966. Mohd Khir Johari was appointed as the first chairman of the board of trustees upon the establishment of the foundation. On 16 April 1974, the cabinet decided that the seat of the chairman would be held by the office of the

Minister of Education An education minister (sometimes minister of education) is a position in the governments of some countries responsible for dealing with educational matters. Where known, the government department, ministry, or agency that develops policy and deli ...

. On 26 March 2004 the jurisdiction of the foundation was transferred from the Ministry of Education to the newly devolved Ministry of Higher Education. In December 2022, the jurisdiction of the foundation was once again transferred from the Ministry of Higher Education to the Ministry of National Unity.

Disbursements, awards and prizes

Tunku Abdul Rahman Foundation Scholarship

The scholarship (not to be mistaken with other Tunku Abdul Rahman scholarships) was established in 2006 to replace a previous financial aid program that was in the form of a loan. The awarding of the scholarship is the main endowment by the foundation and is open for applications annually. Applications for the scholarship is open to academically outstanding Malaysian undergraduates below 25 years of age who meet specific criteria set by the foundation. Recipients of this scholarship are known as Tunku Scholars. After several batch of scholarship recipients, Tunku Scholars Association Malaysia was established to foster a network and bonding among current scholarship recipients and alumni. More information can be found on the Association's official website.

Tunku Abdul Rahman Chair of International Law

On 5 January 1985, the foundation gave an endowment of RM 1,000,000 to the

University of Malaya The Universiti Malaya (lit 'University of Malaya'; abbreviated UM) is a public university, public research university located in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. It is the oldest Malaysian institution of higher education, and was the only university in ...

to establish an academic chair in the Faculty of Law. This became known as the Tunku Abdul Rahman Chair of International Law. In June 1985, the Senate of the University of Malaya appointed Ian Campbell MacGibbon as the first holder of the chair. The next Tunku Abdul Rahman Professor of International Law was Herbert Victor Morais. In 2016 the Chair was renamed. The current holder is Emeritus Professor Datuk Dr Hj Shad Saleem Faruqi who was appointed in February 2017.

Other awards and prizes

Apart from the two main disbursements described above, the foundation also grants the following awards and prizes:Yayasan Tunku Abdul Rahman
Hadiah-hadiah YTAR
(in Malay)

Tunku Abdul Rahman Medal

This award is in the form of a gold medal, a certificate, and a unit trust certificate from Amanah Saham Gemilang worth RM 3,000 awarded to one graduate from a local institution of higher education annually. Nominations are received from the respective institutions and selected based on specific criteria set by the foundation.

Tunku Abdul Rahman Foundation Academic Prize

This was a cash prize of RM 500 awarded to the best first year undergraduate student of the Faculty of Human Ecology a

Universiti Putra Malaysia University of Putra Malaysia ( Malay: ''Universiti Putra Malaysia''), abbreviated as UPM, is a Malaysian public research university located in Serdang, Selangor. Formerly it was named Universiti Pertanian Malaysia (Agricultural University of ...

. The prize is no longer awarded.

Tunku Abdul Rahman Higher Degree Scholarship

This was a scholarship awarded to academically excellent students intending to pursue

postgraduate education Postgraduate education, graduate education, or graduate school consists of Academic degree, academic or professional degrees, certificates, diplomas, or other qualifications usually pursued by higher education, post-secondary students who have ...

. The awarding of this scholarship is currently suspended.

Governance

The foundation is governed by a board of trustees made up of the following: * The Chairperson as appointed by the Yang Di-Pertuan Agong * One representative from the Ministry of National Unity * One representative from the Federal Treasury of Malaysia * Six members appointed by the Minister * The Chief Executive of the foundation

External links

Tunku Abdul Rahman Foundation

References

{{reflist Educational organisations based in Malaysia Foundations based in Malaysia Educational foundations Educational charities Organizations established in 1966 1966 establishments in Malaysia Organisations based in Putrajaya