Highest poverty drop in Interior
Published on: Friday, September 07, 2012
Kota Kinabalu: Chief Minister Datuk Seri Musa Aman on Thursday said Sabah Interior showed the highest decrease in poverty, thanks to various poverty eradication programmes that were initiated and implemented by the Government.Sabah Interior, he said, recorded a 13.2 per cent decrease in poverty from 29 per cent in 2004 to 15.8 per cent in 2009."Overall, Sabah's poverty rate went down from 24.2 per cent to 19.7 per cent in the same period," he told reporters after chairing the State Steering Committee meeting on Poverty Eradication Scheme at Wisma Innoprise, here.
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According to him, the State and Federal Governments' poverty eradication programmes include the Mesej project, Hardcore Poor Housing Programme (PPRT) plantation, Agropolitan, 1Azam, House Assistance Programme (PBR), Town Poverty Eradication Programme (PPKB) and Amanah Saham Bumiputera (ASB).The ASB, he said, is implemented to cover Poor and Hardcore Poor Household Heads (KIRMTs) and Poor Household Heads (KIRMs) listed under the e-Kasih system.So far, he said, there are 29 oil palm and rubber Mesej schemes in Sabah, six aquaculture Mesej, seven micro agriculture/aquaculture Mesej and two integrated Mesej that have been implemented in poverty-prevalent areas throughout Sabah.Of the number, 12 Mesej and six micro-Mesej schemes have been fully completed, he said.
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"Four new Mesej projects are in the process of land application or surveying for implementation starting 2013," he said.He said all the Mesej projects are expected to involve more than 2,000 KIRMTs.
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Apart from that, Musa said, the State Government is considering to implement another PPRT plantation in Nabawan, in addition to the two PPRT plantations in Tongod and Kalabakan, respectively.He said a total of 1,167 KIRMTs are now receiving monthly dividends of RM400 from the Tongod and Kalabakan PPRT plantations. He said they were also given employment and housing facilities in the plantations concerned.As of Sept 5, he said, a total of 1,143 of the 1,400 PBR-type houses by the Federal Government for this year have been completed."An addition of 600 new PBR houses is in the implementation stage, making the total PBR houses approved for this year to 2,000 with a cost of RM100 million," he said.Musa said the total approved PBR houses in Sabah since the programme was started in 2010 are 7,149 units.Meanwhile, the Federal Territories and Urban Wellbeing Ministry has implemented various programmes under the Town Poverty Eradication Programme, he said.Under this scheme for last year and this year, he said, a total of 533 people received the House Rent Aid, while Skills Aid, 356, Amanah Saham Wawasan 2020, 1,425 people and House Construction Aid, 30.State Government agency, Ko-Nelayan, he said, also conducted poverty eradication programmes such as the Hardcore Poverty Eradication Programme (2007-2010) through the ICU-JPM special allocation fund of RM10.198 million involving 670 fishermen."Apart from that, more than RM5.7 million has been allocated under the 1Azam programme 2010 involving 489 fishermen that are listed under the e-Kasih programme and also RM10.005 million under the second phase of the 1Azam programme in 2011," he said.As of June 30, this year, a total of 690 fishermen were involved under the second phase of the 1Azam, he said.As of 2011, he said, a total of 1,116 were involved in the Amanah Saham Bumiputera Sejahtera (ASB Sejahtera) programme by the Ministry of Rural and Regional Development Ministry."The proposed figure for this year (under the ASB Sejahtera) is 326 people," he said.Stay up-to-date by following Daily Express’s Telegram channel.
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