KUCHING: Social Coordination and Monitoring Committee Division (JPPSB), State Social Coordination and Monitoring Committee (JPPSN) and State Social Issues Solution Coordination Committee (JPPISN) were established to strengthen the machinery of social issues.
Minister of Welfare, Community Wellbeing, Women, Family and Childhood Development, Datuk Fatimah Abdullah said that with the implementation of the governance structure, the ministry has collaborated as National Blue Ocean Stratery (NBOS) with various quarters to develop action plans and integrated intervention programme based on multi-dimensional solutions to be implemented outside the framework of business as usual.
“For this year, the ministry has planned to implement 31 programmes of social intervention in the form of outreach, strategic planning, research and evaluation.
“As of April 2017, four dialogue sessions were held in Lawas, Pusa, Serian and Kuching,” she said in his winding-up speech at the State Legislative Assembly sitting here yesterday.
According to Fatimah, welfare is one of the core services of the ministry.
She said the service includes three strategic thrusts, namely social wellbeing, economic development, rehabilitation and legislation.
“Enhancement of social wellbeing services focuses on the four functions, namely financial assistance, disaster relief, social support services and community development volunteer,” she said.
Through the service of satellite office and cooperation of local leaders and local people to provide information about people who really need help, she said the ministry has managed to expand access to areas that were previously inaccessible.
“Through this effort, the number of recipients of various financial assistance schemes has increased from 43,500 people in 2011 to 57,047 people in 2016.
“For disaster service, in 2016, the ministry has helped a total of 72,514 disaster victims by an expenditure of RM3.5 million and as of April 2017 a total of 35,924 people with a total expenditure of RM2.7 million,” she explained.
On the development of volunteer community, she said until now the ministry has helped to strengthen 80 organisations and volunteer teams.
Every year, Fatimah said the government provided an allocation of RM2 million for operating grants, programmes and activities that contribute to community welfare programmes such as children’s needs, disabled people, the elderly, victims of natural disasters and poor families.
In order to help State Social Welfare Department (JKMS) to do more and to reach out to more, she said that currently there are 1,421 volunteers have been appointed and trained to provide support services supportive in Home Help, management service at the disaster relief centre, course service at various welfare activity centre and as lay counsellors for trauma victims.
Currently, she said Sarawak has 51 Community Rehabilitation Centres (PDKs), which provide rehabilitation services to 3,061 disabled people of various categories.
