THE Sarawak Women, Family and Community Welfare Ministry has set a target of reducing by half the number of families (nearly 18,000) on the extreme poverty list in the state.
Minister Datuk Seri Fatimah Abdullah said the latest E-Kasih figure showed 17,892 Sarawakian households on the extreme-poor list and the state was aiming to at least halve that number within the next two years.
“We are updating the data now and we want to bring at least half of them out of extreme poverty from now until 2026.
“We must improve their livelihood by providing them training and assistance so that they can increase their income.
“For the young ones, education support and skills development will be crucial to bring them out of the cycle of poverty.
“We also want to update the E-Kasih list in Sarawak so that we can know more accurately the ground situation in this post-Covid time,” she said at an education seminar recently.
The high number of Sarawakians still living below the poverty line and those in the extreme poverty category are longstanding problems in Sarawak.
Despite the grand announcements by state leaders about how developed Sarawak is and all the mega projects announced by Premier Tan Sri Abang Johari Openg, the reality on the ground points to a big divide between the rich and the poor among the three million people in Sarawak.
On July 27, 2022, a Dayak party had slammed the Sarawak government leaders for trying to blame the federal government over the latest E-Kasih findings at that time that there are up to 97,000 families living below poverty line in this state.
Parti Bangsa Dayak Sarawak Baru (PBDSB) had said Sarawak’s ruling parties, especially Parti Pesaka Bumiputera Bersatu (PBB), must shoulder the blame for the unbalanced progress in the state.
PBDSB Youth chief Robert Saweng said Sarawak is seeing mega projects being implemented in certain areas, yet the people remain poor at the grassroot levels.
“The Dayaks are the ones mostly living below the poverty line.
“PBB, which has been in power for decades and the main party behind the state government, has failed in its duty to uplift the life of the rural poor in Sarawak.
“PBB cannot push its responsibility of ensuring balanced progress in this state to the federal government.
“PBB cannot blame the federal government for the high poverty rate in Sarawak as disclosed by the E-Kasih latest figures (at that time),” he had said in a statement. – June 3, 2024.
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