Homeless residents drop by 80% after M’sia-S’pore border closing, remote location

Preparing a refuge: Nurul Zahrawaini supervising a staff while she keeps the empty beds clean at Anjung Singgah in Taman Nongchik, Johor Baru.

JOHOR BARU: While the Malaysia-Singapore border closure has contributed to a rise in the number of homeless in the city centre here, the situation is not helped by the relocation of the Federal Government’s homeless shelter, Anjung Singgah.

The shelter, managed by the National Welfare Foundation Malaysia (NWF), saw a drop of about 80%, from around 30 residents a month previously to fewer than five a month at its new location, said its southern zone director Nurul Zahrawaini Mohamad Nordan.