KUALA LUMPUR, Nov 28 — A total of 132,404 applications have been received for the People’s Income Initiative (IPR) as of November 21, 2023, the Ministry of Economy said today.
The ministry said after screening, a total of 49,687 individuals from the low-income category qualified to be matched with three initiatives, including 21,944 applicants under the Food Entrepreneur Initiative (Insan), 13,192 under the Farming Entrepreneur Initiative (Intan) and 14,551 applicants under the Services Operator Initiative (Ikhsan).
“Under Intan, a total of 1,020 participants have been approved for the implementation of the programme in 15 locations covering an area of 331.03 acres (approximately 133.96 hectares) with a total cost of RM92.6 million,” the ministry said in a response published on the Parliament website today.
It said through the Insan initiative, a total of 100 participants nationwide have benefited from the implementation of the pilot programme and successfully achieved average daily sales ranging from RM90 to RM400.
Meanwhile, it said a total of 1,032 participants have been approved for the implementation of the Ikhsan initiative, involving a total cost of RM14.2 million.
“Additionally, the approach to eradicate hardcore poverty through targeted programme implementation, whether individually, communally or hybrid, is also continued based on the profile of hardcore poor household heads and members as well as the potential of selected localities throughout the country,” the ministry said.
It said to date, a total of 1,922 hardcore poor household head projects have been approved with an allocation of RM24.8 million spent on the implementation of this approach, especially in rural areas.
It added that the ministry is also implementing capacity and human capital enhancement programmes as well as basic financial management and bookkeeping courses for IPR participants conducted in strategic collaboration with public universities. — Bernama
