KUALA LUMPUR: Almost RM170 million in compassionate aid (BWI) has been distributed to 168,959 heads of households (KIR) affected by the 2022/2023 Northeast Monsoon season, the Dewan Rakyat was told today.
Women, Family and Community Development Minister Datuk Seri Nancy Shukri said that RM560,000 BWI death assistance was also distributed to 56 next of kin of disaster victims.
She said that, as for the 2023/2024 MTL season, it has not yet ended, but the federal government, through the National Disaster Management Agency (NADMA), has channelled the initial allocation of disaster aid to all states, amounting to RM232 million, to speed up the distribution process of BWI to affected KIR who meet eligibility requirements set.
“This is not a form of compensation for the losses suffered by disaster victims, but it is more a sign of the federal government’s concern to ease the burden of disaster victims,” she said.
She was replying to a question from Datuk Siti Zailah Mohd Yusoff (PN-Rantau Panjang), regarding the aid policy for flood victims, as well as the amount of compensation including compassionate assistance, during a question and answer session in the Dewan Rakyat today.
Nancy said that, in addition to the federal government’s assistance, the state governments can identify other assistance to contribute through state-level agencies, such as zakat boards and corporate bodies, to help ease the burden of disaster victims.
In addition, she said that to strengthen the preparedness level to deal with the impact of hot and dry weather during the monsoon transition, which is expected to continue until the end of March, the government has agreed to carry out the cloud seeding operations (OPA), to ensure sufficient water resources in the water catchment areas throughout the period. – Bernama
