123,721 Waja Squad volunteers registered until last Feb 3 - Rina Harun

JOHOR BAHRU: A total of 123,721 Waja Squad volunteers have been registered nationwide as of last Feb 3 since it was launched last year, said Women, Family and Community Development Minister Datuk Seri Rina Mohd Harun.

She said through the squad, which is a psychological support aid initiative for women, the volunteers had helped to handle 945 cases and engaged with 6,837 people at the psychosocial programmes it organised.

In Johor, she said, there are 8,886 registered Waja Squad volunteers, involving 8,727 women and 159 men.

During the floods in Johor, a total of 5,331 individuals have been assisted by the Waja Squad from all over the state, she said in her speech at the launch of the Waja Squad @Johor here today.

Rina's speech was read out by the Women, Family and Community Development Ministry's deputy secretary-general (Operations) Mohd Yusri Mohd Yusoff.

"With the large number of Waja Squad members, I am confident and believe that the Johor Waja Squad will be able to carry out more activities and assist the community," she said and called on Waja Squad volunteers to be more proactive in the aspect of case reporting.

Rina said the ministry also had several plans to improve the Waja Squad programe, which included the implementation of advanced training for Waja Squad members in the field of Psychological First Aid (PFA) , which is a form of community support intervention used after disasters, crisis or violence.

-- BERNAMA