Kota Kinabalu: Sabah will not raise welfare aid for now, maintaining payments at between RM200 and RM350, said Assistant Minister of Health and People’s Wellbeing Datuk Rina Jainal.
She said any increase would depend on the state government’s financial position, while federal welfare aid is determined separately under allocations announced in the national budget.
“The state government’s readiness to increase the welfare budget is subject to its financial standing,” she said when responding during the sitting.
Instead of raising aid rates, Rina said both the State and Federal governments had expanded eligibility criteria in line with the updated Poverty Line Income (PGK).
The household income threshold has been increased from RM1,198 in 2025 to RM1,236 in 2026, while the per capita threshold rose from RM322 to RM348.
She stressed that welfare assistance is not an entitlement but is based on eligibility and is temporary in nature to help recipients improve their socio-economic standing and become self-reliant.
Rina also said recipients are required to undergo periodic reviews, failing which assistance may be terminated for reasons such as exceeding the poverty threshold, death, relocation, failure to submit review forms, or inability to be contacted.
She added that individuals whose assistance has been discontinued but remain in need may submit fresh applications through district welfare offices or via online platforms, including the Sabah Welfare Aid Application (SWAA) for state aid and the eBantuan system for federal assistance.
She was responding to three questions raised by Inanam Assemblywoman Edna Jessica Majimbun, including whether the government planned to increase welfare aid in line with the rising cost of living.
Responding to a supplementary question from Sekong Assemblyman Alias Sani, she said welfare aid had only seen a modest increase over the past two decades.
“In more than 10 years, the increase was RM50, from RM150 to RM200, which was implemented in 2020. As of 2026, there has been no further increase, and adjustments are typically made roughly every 10 years,” she said.
