By Shikin Louis
KUCHING, June 13: After years of operating parallel welfare aid systems, the federal government and Sarawak have now successfully integrated their platforms under the eBantuanJKM system—a move aimed at eliminating abuse and improving efficiency in welfare delivery.
Federal Minister of Women, Family and Community Development Dato Sri Nancy Shukri said the system has been in existence for 15 years, but had only recently been implemented in Sarawak.
“Before this, the federal and Sarawak governments each had their own systems. That made things difficult.
“If you’ve been following the news, you’ll know there were people who took advantage—they exploited the loopholes,” she told reporters in a doorstep interview after officiating the launch of eBantuanJKM at Raia Hotel today.
With the unified system now in place, Nancy emphasised that there is no longer room for misappropriation.
“The system is very tight, very efficient. And because we are now working together, it’s not difficult to merge both systems,” she added.
She also confirmed that action has already been taken against individuals who abused the previous system, with some having been prosecuted in court.
At the same time, Nancy stressed the importance of ensuring accessibility to welfare aid, especially for rural communities, through the involvement of Village Development and Security Committees (JKKKs), non-governmental organisations (NGOs), and local leaders.
“Our JKKKs, NGOs and community leaders must be aware when villagers face difficulties. They should guide them and refer them to our district welfare officers (PKMD), who are present in every district.
“I reminded all officers earlier—make it easy for people to get the assistance they need. Don’t make it difficult.
“We are here to serve, so let’s make the process less intimidating. People should not be afraid to approach government officers for help,” she emphasised.
As of May 2025, Nancy disclosed that a total of 55,457 recipients in Sarawak have received aid amounting to RM123.78 million under the integrated system.
Of this, 45,509 individuals received RM108.19 million from the federal government, while the Sarawak government disbursed RM15.60 million to 9,948 recipients.
She noted that these updated figures include data beyond what was presented in her earlier speech, which only covered statistics up to April.
While eBantuanJKM has already enhanced transparency and delivery, Nancy said in her speech that her ministry is working towards a further upgrade with the introduction of Sistem Pengurusan Bantuan Kebajikan 2.0 or Welfare Assistance Management System 2.0 (SPBK 2.0) by the end of 2026.
SPBK 2.0 will be fully digital and integrated with national systems such as the Central Database Hub (PADU), National Poverty Data Bank (eKasih), and the Malaysia Government Data Exchange (MyGDX). It will also be powered by secure, cutting-edge technologies including cloud computing, automated notifications, and data analytics.
The system is part of the federal government’s MyDIGITAL agenda and aims to accelerate the verification and distribution of aid based on real-time, accurate data. — DayakDaily
