KUALA LUMPUR: The Energy, Science, Technology, Environment and Climate Change Ministry plans to power another 15 Orang Asli settlements in Pahang as part of an effort to raise the standard of living of the rural poor.
Funds from the AAIBE (Akaun Amanah Industri Bekalan Elektrik) will be used to underwrite the cost of the project, according to its minister Yeo Bee Yin.
AAIBE was set up by the ministry to collect contributions from the power supply industry to fund electricity supply projects in rural areas.
Yeo, who was delivering a keynote address at the Google Earth Outreach for Good programme today, said there were still a large number of villages in the country without functioning solar panels, electricity and water services.
“Allocation is only part of the solution and we need a sustainable way to help to power up Orang Asli villages,” she said.
“This pilot project (of powering up 15 Orang Asli settlements) is not only about powering up, but we are also thinking of ways to sustain it through community empowerment, so they can maintain the power system that is safe to function for many years to come,” she added.
Yeo said once the framework of the project was in place, the ministry would hand it over to the Rural Development Ministry to adopt the framework.
She said another innovative project undertaken by her ministry was the Malaysia Social Innovation Programme (MySI).
“Through this programme, called Kampung Teknologi, we plan to design technology to cater to the needs of the rural areas as the geographical factors are different from the cities,” she said.
Yeo said RM5 million had been allocated to the Kampung Teknologi for the benefit of those in the B40 group.
It was reported in May that the ministry had allocated RM24 million for industrial R&D this year.
Yeo also commended Google Malaysia for its effort in helping indigenous communities through the use of mapping tools.
She called upon all sectors to participate in the effort to achieve shared prosperity among Malaysians, which is the theme for the 12th Malaysia Plan.
“We hope that through the work of private and government sectors together with the NGOs, we will be able to share the prosperity not only among the people in the city, but even among the most rural area in Malaysia,” said Yeo.
