Think City Sdn Bhd (Think City), a wholly-owned subsidiary of Khazanah Nasional Bhd, is offering grants totalling RM500,000 for projects to make Butterworth more liveable and people-centric.

Think City grants programme director and counsel, Murali Ram, said the programme is aimed at empowering and supporting innovative and sustainable efforts by residents for the betterment of the city.

"With the grants, people have the opportunity to kick-start their own initiatives which may have been hampered by lack of funding or support," he told reporters here today.

He said the objectives of the grant programme are to build on the momentum of civil society and private sector initiatives, to protect and develop living heritage, culture and architecture, and to encourage a sustainable liveable environment.

"The grant programme will also kick-start the Butterworth regeneration initiative to create an environment to attract more people and investors," he said.

Murali said to qualify for the grants, the proposed projects must address the environments of historic significance or public facilities and the enhancement of economic or social conditions of the communities within the Think City zones.

He said each grant is for the duration of 12 months after the fund is channelled and Think City would allocate between RM10,000 and RM200,000 for each eligible recipient.

The Think City zones here include Jalan Lingkaran Luar Butterworth, Jalan Raja Uda, Jalan Chain Ferry and Jalan Kampung Paya, he added.

"Think City is currently working closely with the Seberang Perai Municipal Council for the Butterworth Baharu Programme, for which the grant programme is one of the strategies being implemented," he said.

He said the grants, funded by Yayasan Khazanah, is open for application from today until July 31 this year.

Those interested can visit www.thinkcity.com.my for more information on the application process.