GOVERNMENT COMMITTED TO RAISING LIVING STANDARD OF LOW INCOME PEOPLE

KUALA LUMPUR, Dec 17 (Bernama) -- The government via the National Key Result
Areas (NKRA) is committed to raising the living standard of low income people in
an effort to reduce hardcore poverty.

Women, Family and Community Development Minister Shahrizat Abdul Jalil said
it aimed to reduce hardcore poverty from 3.8 percent presently to 2.8 percent by
2010 and 2 percent by 2012.

"We want to rid Malaysia of the poor. The people must seize the many job
opportunities available," she said at the Government Transformation Programme
(GTP) at Sunway Convention Centre Thursday.

It was opened by Minister in the Prime Minister's Department Koh Tsu
Koon, the minister responsible for national unity and performance management.

Koh is also chairman of the Performance and Implementation Management Unit
(Pemandu).

Shahrizat said to help low income people, the ministry would start making
welfare payments on the first day of every month starting January next year.

It also planned to increase the number of businesswomen to 4,000 by 2012
under the Sahabat Amanah Ikhtiar programme.

Under the social development service programme, the government would
distribute aid to the poor to prevent them from falling below the poverty line.

She said the programme's aim was to increase the household income through
effective distribution of aid.
-- BERNAMA