KUCHING: Community welfare and environmental conservation must go hand in hand to ensure sustainable development and a better quality of life for future generations.
Federal Minister of Women, Family and Community Development, Datuk Seri Nancy Shukri, said programmes such as the Mahasiswa Prihatin and Jejak Hijau initiatives play an important role in cultivating social responsibility and environmental awareness among youths and local communities.
“This programme combines two important agenda that complement each other, namely community welfare and environmental conservation.
“It is our collective responsibility to ensure that awareness on environmental protection begins at home and is practised continuously by the community,” she said.
She said this during the ‘Pengenalan Program Sahabat PSSS YKN: Mahasiswa Prihatin’ and ‘Jejak Hijau: Selamatkan Pantai dan Laut Kita’ events at Kampung Trombol this morning.
Nancy commended the collaboration between Yayasan Kebajikan Negara (YKN) and Kampung Trombol’s village committee in organising the event.
She also acknowledged the participation of students from Universiti Teknologi MARA (UiTM) Sarawak, i-CATS University and CENTEXS Sarawak, describing their involvement as an inspiration to others.
Among the activities held during the programme were aerobics sessions, plogging (jogging while collecting litter), environmental awareness talks, the introduction of YKN’s Psychosocial Support Services (PSSS), food basket distribution, and community engagement activities.
She noted that the PSSS provides early intervention, emotional support, counselling services, and referrals to relevant agencies for individuals and families facing challenges.
To improve accessibility, YKN has also introduced mobile outreach services to bring psychosocial support directly to rural communities.
“The PSSS Young Peer Support Programme introduced in October 2025 aims to involve more young people as community support ambassadors.
“Through this initiative, students can serve as volunteers, provide early support and connect individuals in need with appropriate assistance,” she said.
On environmental conservation, Nancy revealed that participants collected about 1,000 kilogrammes of waste during the programme, with approximately 90 per cent consisting of plastic materials.
She stressed the need to instil environmental awareness among children and youths so that they can become advocates for sustainable practices within their communities.
Meanwhile, Nancy highlighted several development projects approved for Kampung Trombol amounting to RM900,000.
The projects include the construction of a rural link road worth RM500,000, an upgrade of the access road to Trombol Paradise under the Rural Transformation Programme (RTP) allocation of RM350,000, and the construction of new public toilets and bathrooms for visitors costing RM100,000.
“These initiatives are part of our efforts to ensure Kampung Trombol continues to develop not only as a tourism destination but also as a progressive and prosperous community,” she said.
Nancy expressed hope that similar programmes would continue to be organised annually to strengthen community engagement, volunteerism and environmental stewardship among Sarawak’s younger generation.
