GEORGE TOWN, April 21 -- Education Minister Fadhlina Sidek said Malaysia is expanding its elective language offerings in schools to include Asean languages like Thai, Khmer, and Vietnamese.

Speaking at the Empowering Education Summit 2025 here, she noted that Malaysia's bilingual foundation in Bahasa Malaysia and English is now evolving to support regional collaboration.

"To harness this, we must ensure our young people are multilingual, adaptable, and culturally competent," she said in her keynote address.

She said the summit's theme - "Shaping Asean's Future Through Skills and Innovation" - is timely and urgent, as over half of Asean's 670 million people under 35.

"This demographic advantage is a unique asset but it can just as easi...