Direct cash aid programme rebranded as Bantuan Keluarga Malaysia

 

BUDGET 2022 | Finance Minister Tengku Zafrul Abdul Aziz has announced that the direct cash aid programme will be improved and rebranded as Bantuan Keluarga Malaysia (BKM) under Budget 2022.

“Next year, the direct cash aid initiative will be improved. 

"The government will introduce BKM, with some enhancements so that the groups who really need the assistance will get more focus,” he said while tabling Budget 2022 in the Dewan Rakyat today.

Under this initiative, a household with three children or more and earning less than RM2,500 a month will get a RM2,000 one-off cash aid.

This is an increase compared to the RM1,800 one-off cash aid given to the same group under the Bantuan Prihatin Rakyat (BPR) before this, he added.

The government will also give another RM500 to single parents earning up to RM5,000 a month, whereas senior citizens will receive an additional RM300.

“This means that for single parents with three children or more, they will qualify for a maximum of RM2,500 cash aid from BKM.

"A total of RM8.2 billion has been allocated for this initiative and an estimated 9.6 million recipients will benefit from it," he said.

Eligibility requirement based on 2019 food poverty line

Tengku Zafrul added that the eligibility requirement for the aid channelled by the Welfare Department will now be based on the 2019 food poverty line that is set at RM1,169.

“These efforts to broaden the social welfare coverage is in line with the government’s commitment to ensure help reaches those who really need it, as well as taking into account the rising cost of living,” he said.

In total, the government has allocated RM2.5 billion to give as aid to more than 440,000 needy households. - Mkini