Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim, in a Facebook post, said that for this year alone, a total of more than RM12 billion in federal funds had been allocated for Sabah development, comprising RM5.97 billion for the education sector, RM2.49 billion for health, RM3.69 billion for infrastructure and RM162.77 million for employment and economic opportunities.
He said the federal government had channelled “the largest allocation for Sabah to help ease the cost of living, address the electricity and water supply issues, build hospitals, upgrade dilapidated clinics and eradicate hardcore poverty”, Bernama reported.
In his posting today, on the eve of the Sabah state assembly elections, he urged Sabahans to “choose a future that brings a ray of hope (Harapan) and one that truly works for the people of Sabah”.
He added that the government had also carried out various initiatives to help reduce the cost of living pressure on the people of Sabah through the BUDI95 programme, special diesel subsidies in addition to the nationwide Sara social welfare aid programmes, which provide benefits to over 842,000 recipients in the state.
Anwar said although the Sabah government has regained full regulatory authority over the state’s electricity supply, the federal government would continue to support it through the continuity of electricity supply amounting to RM1.2 billion, the Sabah rural electricity supply costing RM190 million, the installation of hybrid solar panels in small villages and the construction of the southern link transmission line to strengthen renewable energy.
On the issue of clean water, he said the Sabah water supply project is expected to be completed next year, with the federal government providing funding amounting to RM1 billion since 2024, including projects in Tawau, Kota Kinabalu, Penampang and Putatan.
He said Sabah also received the most benefits from the dilapidated school renovation project, comprising 230 projects that were fully completed as part of the federal allocation to address the issue of dilapidated schools and clinics in Sabah and Sarawak.
Anwar said there has been a significant achievement in efforts to eradicate hardcore poverty in Sabah, with the number of household heads in that category reduced from 23,651 in February 2024 to just four in October this year.