KUCHING, March 23: The Minister of Finance Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim reported that RM17.1 billion is still left in the National Trust Fund of Malaysia (KWAN) as of December 2022, after RM5 billion was used for the National Covid-19 Immunisation programme.
Anwar also emphasised that the Federal government is committed to replenish KWAN funds and will consider contributions to KWAN when the financial status of the country recovers.
“Petronas plans to contribute RM2 billion to KWAN this year.
“Since its establishment in 1988, Petronas remains one of the core contributors to KWAN,” he said in response to Senator Datuk Paul Igai on Tuesday (March 21) during the ongoing Dewan Negara Sitting in Kuala Lumpur.
Paul has questioned about the current status of the KWAN and if the government has intention to save more money in KWAN given that the Covid-19 pandemic has improved, as well as on Petronas which reported a profit of RM72 billion at the end of 2022 with possibility of achieving its target of RM100 billion in 2023.
KWAN was established in 1988 to ensure optimum usage of the country’s natural resources and was mandated to generate a continuous source of income for the benefit of the country and future generation.
“In line with the objective, the government has allocated up to RM6 billion for Covid-19 vaccines,” Anwar said.
The government is also calling more entities to contribute to the KWAN for the benefit of the country in the future. — DayakDaily
