Kota Kinabalu: A total of 122 units of Rumah Mesra Sabah Maju Jaya (SMJ) were completed as of June, said Sabah Rural Development Minister Datuk Jahid Jahim.
He said it was part of the 1,500 units that the state government aimed at building throughout the state, with each of Sabah’s 73 state constituencies to receive a distribution of 20 housing units.
“The remaining construction of 1,378 Rumah Mesra SMJ will continue this year,” he told Bernama.
The Rumah Mesra SMJ initiative was implemented last year by adopting the Hardcore Poor Housing Project concept to help people below the poverty line to own a house.
It is a high-impact initiative under the Hala Tuju SMJ development plan initiated by the Gabungan Rakyat Sabah (GRS) government to ensure the well-being of the people by providing them access to affordable housing.
Recipients under the Rumah Mesra SMJ initiative are selected from those listed in the e-kasih system (the National Poverty Data Bank system), individuals with dilapidated houses, persons with disabilities and victims of disasters, Jahid said adding that the housing project was funded by the special allocation of RM125.6 million the state government received from the federal government last year.
He said his ministry was committed to ensuring that each unit under the Rumah Mesra SMJ will be completed on time to allow the target group to enjoy a more comfortable home.
Besides Rumah Mesra SMJ, the state government has also implemented the Rumah Sejahtera Rakyat Sabah programme since 2021, he added.
