ALOR GAJAH: The government has increased the allocation to build new homes under the rebranded Program Perumahan Rakyat Sejahtera (PPRS), formerly known as the hardcore poor housing programme (PPRT), says Deputy Prime Minister Datuk Seri Dr Ahmad Zahid Hamidi.
He said that in Peninsular Malaysia, the allocation has been raised from RM66,000 to RM79,000, and in Sabah, Sarawak and Labuan, from RM79,000 to RM85,000.
"For home repairs, the allocation has been increased to RM20,000 from RM15,000 for Peninsular Malaysia, and RM17,000 to RM20,000 in Sabah, Sarawak and Labuan.
"Additionally, the size of the homes has been increased from 660 to 680 square feet,” he told reporters after chairing the coordination meeting between the Rural and Regional Development Ministry and rural executive councillors here on Thursday (Nov 7).
Also present were Melaka Chief Minister Datuk Seri Ab Rauf Yusoh and rural executive councillors from across the country.
Ahmad Zahid, who is also Rural and Regional Development Minister, said a proposal was made at the meeting to build a special education kindergarten for autistic children in every district.
He said the ministry would follow up on this although the proposal could not be implemented immediately as it needs significant funding.
Meanwhile, he said the Digital Village and Community Paramedic initiatives introduced by the Melaka government could be expanded to other states, and thanked the state government for coming up with them. – Bernama
