PUTRAJAYA – The government will continue to focus on reducing the country’s poverty rate following the Covid-19 outbreak, which Putrajaya expects will result in a rise in poverty.
Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department (Economy) Datuk Seri Mustapa Mohamed said based on the Household Income, Expenditure and Basic Amenities Survey 2019, the poverty rate for the year was 5.6%, and it could now increase by almost 3%.
“The Poverty Line Income review study was conducted in 2019 and announced last year. So this study does not cover what happened in 2020,” he said in an interview to mark the anniversary of Malaysia Prihatin.
Mustapa said national poverty was also placed as a priority under the 12th Malaysia Plan (12MP), which among others, focused specifically on eliminating hardcore poverty as well as reducing socio-economic inequality.
He said the 12MP also emphasised Bumiputera empowerment to reduce the gap between Bumiputeras and other races, apart from accelerating development in Sabah and Sarawak and other less developed states.
He also called for more accurate and detailed data to formulate a suitable plan for those in need of government attention.
“The problem with data on poverty is that there are many sources. For example, we have the Statistics Department (DOSM), eKasih, the Social Welfare Department and so on. We want to make sure data on poverty is accurate.
“If you look at DOSM, it says there are 405,441 poor households, but we have been informed that there may be more than that. So we will go down to the field to see the real situation,” he said, adding that he was due in Sabah next week.
Meanwhile, Chief Statistician Datuk Seri Dr Mohd Uzir Mahidin when contacted by Bernama said the latest study was still in the pilot phase.
“The study will be done in the middle of this year. For now, we are doing a pilot test. The results will be released and shared with the public before the end of next year,” he said. – Bernama, March 12, 2021
