THE government has learned from the chaotic first rollout of the RM100 Sumbangan Asas Rahmah (SARA) one-off aid, announcing major upgrades ahead of the second phase starting February 2026.
Treasury secretary-general Datuk Johan Mahmood Merican confirmed server capacity has been significantly strengthened to prevent the massive congestion that frustrated millions when the programme launched on August 31.
“To improve the rakyat’s experience in the second round, the server capacity has been enhanced to address the issues faced before,” he said as quoted by The Star.
“The number of participating retailers has also been increased, now with more than 8,000 shops, of which there are more than 2,000 small grocery stores,” he reportedly added.
With 8,000 outlets now listed, the number of participating retailers has nearly doubled. Now it includes more than 2,000 small grocery stores, giving recipients greater flexibility to redeem essentials closer to home.
The first SARA phase, announced by Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim in July as a National Day gift, provided RM100 via MyKad to every Malaysian aged 18 and above, totalling RM2 bil for 22 mil citizens.
Despite initial technical glitches and long queues, over 1.84 mil people redeemed RM118.9 mil worth of goods in the first two days alone.
Domestic Trade and Cost of Living Minister Datuk Armizan Mohd Ali said public feedback continues to be channelled to the Finance Ministry for further refinements.
The second RM100 payment, confirmed under Budget 2026, will again be redeemable at participating supermarkets and grocers for basic necessities. Unspent funds from both phases will be redirected to vulnerable groups next year.
With inflation cooling to 1.1% but food prices still elevated, the expanded SARA aims to deliver faster, fairer relief to all adult Malaysians when redemption resumes in February. — Focus Malaysia
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