AIMING to break the cycle of generational poverty, Perak is focusing its eradication efforts at sub-district (mukim) level to provide more direct and effective aid to vulnerable communities.
State women, family, social welfare, cooperatives and entrepreneur development committee chairman Datuk Salbiah Mohamed said the new strategy allowed for more targeted interventions, especially for high-risk groups such as second-generation families in poverty and school dropouts.
“This is to ensure that poverty is not inherited and families can move up to a better social level,” she said during the state assembly sitting at Bangunan Perak Darul Ridzuan in Jalan Panglima Bukit Gantang Wahab, Ipoh.
“We want to break the cycle of poverty through education, skills training and social mobility.”
To achieve this, she said the initiative employed a two-pronged approach.
“For education, the state is rolling out school entry aid, one-off assistance for enrolment in higher education, scholarships and study loans.
“To boost household income, support is provided through business equipment aid, entrepreneurship grants and job-matching programmes.”
Salbiah was responding to a question from Yusri Bakir (BN-Ayer Kuning) regarding the state’s latest poverty eradication reforms.
Underpinning this localised effort is the Poverty Task Force, established in 2024.
Salbiah explained that the task force met monthly at district and state levels to keep data on poor households current, enabling various agencies to coordinate their efforts effectively.
“This is part of our long-term commitment under Perak Sejahtera 2030, and the results are clear,” she added.
