ABOUT 56,660 recipients have benefited from the state’s Monthly Welfare Financial Assistance programme this year, with RM249.2 million disbursed as of Oct 2025.
Minister for Women, Early Childhood and Community Wellbeing, Datuk Seri Fatimah Abdullah, said the state government had allocated RM295.5 million for the programme in 2025.
“Beginning in 2025, the Sarawak Social Welfare Department (JKMS) has continued to strengthen governance and improve the efficiency of assistance management through the integration of the Social Welfare Assistance Management (SWAM) system and the Sarawak Accounting System (SAS), reducing payment processing time from 14 days to just five days,” she said in her ministerial winding-up speech at the Sarawak Legislative Assembly (DUN) sitting yesterday (Dec 2).
Fatimah also said that as of Oct this year, RM6.5 million had been spent under various medical-related assistance schemes — benefiting 312 kidney patients, 81 patients under the Medical Assistance Scheme, and 75 individuals who received prosthetic or support equipment.
In preparation for the 2025/2026 Northeast Monsoon, she said JKMS has identified 658 Temporary Evacuation Centres (PPS) across Sarawak.
She added that essential relief supplies have been stored at the Samarahan Storage Depot, mini depots in Mukah, Kapit, and Miri divisions, and in Lawas District.
“Meanwhile, additional supplies are stored at 12 divisional and district welfare offices, supplemented by 24 forward bases throughout the state,” she said.
