AKPK helps 14,688 individuals settle debts totalling RM593m

KUALA LUMPUR: The Credit Counselling and Debt Management Agency (AKPK) has helped 14,688 individuals fully settle their debts totalling RM593 million via its debt management programme (DMP) as at Sept 30, 2017.
AKPK set up DMP to help borrowers improve their financial standing by restructuring their housing, vehicles and personal loans, including outstanding credit card balances.
AKPK chief executive officer, Azaddin Ngah Tasir, said since its inception in 2006, a total of 631,386 individuals had attended the counselling services as of Sept 30, 2017.
"Of the total, some 198,915 individuals have enrolled in the programme," he told reporters on the sidelines of the AKPK Collaborators Award 2017 here today.
Bank Negara Malaysia's Assistant Governor, Abu Hassan Alshari Yahya, presented the awards.
Azaddin said 68.7% of those who had enrolled in the DMP were in the 30–50 years age bracket who were unable to pay their credit card debts.
He said poor financial planning was a major factor for the financial difficulty faced by the agency's clients and this constituted 44.7% of the cases received, followed by high cost of living (19.3%), business failure or slowdown (14.8%), high medical expenses (9.3%) and others (11.9%).
"Some 14.6% of the individuals below 30 years old who joined the DMP did not have any debt problem but nevertheless wanted to get financial advice.
"This proved that among the younger generation, there is an awareness to be financially literate through AKPK financial education programme," he said.
There are three categories in the AKPK Collaborators Award 2017.
These aimed to inspire people to play a role in enhancing financial awareness and promoting financial education so that they can make informed financial choices.
Amanah Ikhtiar Malaysia and Taylor University bagged the joint Best Collaborator Award for Workplace and Higher Learning Institution, national news agency Bernama won the "Special Jury Award" and Norsela A. Manaf from Politeknik Sultan Idris Shah received the "Best Trainer Award". — Bernama