Nearly RM11bil in STR and Sara aid disbursed to recipients as of September, says Anwar

 

KUALA LUMPUR: Almost RM11bil in Sumbangan Tunai Rahmah (STR) and Sumbangan Asas Rahmah (Sara) assistance have been disbursed to eligible recipients as at September 2026, says Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim.

This included RM3.6bil disbursed to STR recipients through three payment phases.

Anwar, who is also Finance Minister, said monthly Sara recorded a utilisation rate of 99.7%, with transactions worth RM5.2bil as at September 2026.

“The effectiveness of STR and Sara can be assessed through several aspects, including recipient coverage, use of assistance, targeting accuracy and the extent to which the aid meets basic needs.

“This demonstrates that nearly nine million recipients have used their MyKad to purchase essential goods at registered outlets.

“In 2026, nearly nine million people are eligible to receive monthly Sara assistance, while STR is disbursed quarterly to eligible households and senior citizens without spouses,” he said in a parliamentary reply on Monday (Oct 19).

He was responding to Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin (PN-Pagoh), who asked about the effectiveness of the RM15bil allocation for STR and Sara in terms of living expenses, income, poverty and the channelling of savings from subsidy reforms to low-income groups.

Anwar said more than 20 million people had made purchases under the Sara For All initiative, representing 90% of all eligible recipients, with transactions in the domestic market reaching almost RM1.9bil.

On targeting accuracy, he said those eligible but not registered in the STR and Sara databases would be registered automatically through cross-checks against data on recipients of various federal and state government assistance programmes.

Anwar said the government’s subsidy reforms were aimed not only at reducing leakages but also at ensuring savings could be channelled towards the people, including through lower subsidised fuel prices.

Part of the savings had been used to set the prices of subsidised diesel and RON95 at RM2.10 and RM1.99 per litre, respectively, while the remaining fiscal resources could support other targeted assistance programmes.

“This allows eligible members of the public to continue benefiting from subsidies, while reducing leakage and ensuring that government fiscal resources can be channelled towards the people’s priorities.

“In addition, the savings from subsidy reforms have enabled the government to increase allocations for other targeted assistance programmes to benefit more people, as part of efforts to strengthen a more inclusive social safety net.

“Overall, the government assesses the effectiveness of subsidy reforms and STR and Sara not merely by the amounts spent or saved, but by the extent to which public resources translate into more targeted protection, greater purchasing power and tangible benefits for the people,” he said. - Star