Govt announces RM10 bln KITA PRIHATIN Package

The government will implement several initiatives and additional assistance under the RM10 billion PRIHATIN Supplementary Initiative Package (KITA PRIHATIN) in line with its efforts to boost economic recovery.

Prime Minister Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin said the additional package includes the RM7 billion Bantuan Prihatin Nasional 2.0 (BPN 2.0), the RM2.4 billion Wage Subsidy Programme 2.0 and the RM600 million PRIHATIN Special Grant (GKP) worth RM600 million.

He said the KITA PRIHATIN package targets four main groups, namely the B40 group who are married and single; M40 group with family and single; local workers in various fields and micro traders in various fields.

"Since the beginning, the government has been focused on being a caring administration - a government that not only understands the problems faced by the people but also acts quickly and effectively to overcome the challenges that threaten the prosperity of this nation.

"The government needs to be caring during this time of need for Malaysians, especially given the current challenging period," he said while announcing the KITA PRIHATIN package today.

The KITA PRIHATIN package is the extension of the previous economic stimulus packages, namely PRIHATIN, PRIHATIN SME PLUS and PENJANA worth a total of RM295 billion, or about 20 per cent of the nation's gross domestic product, with an additional fiscal injection by the government totalling RM45 billion.

Muhyiddin said the decision to provide the additional cash handouts under BPN 2.0 was in consideration of the ongoing difficulties faced by the people, as industries such as tourism and aviation are taking a longer time to recover from the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Meanwhile, the implementation of the Wage Subsidy Programme 2.0 aims to provide assistance to employers and employees who are still facing difficulties during the economic recovery period, despite the signs of recovery in the job market.

"Under the PRIHATIN and PRIHATIN SME PLUS packages, the government has provided a total allocation of RM15.3 billion to fund the Wage Subsidy Programme for up to 3.3 million workers.

"As at Sept 11, 2020, a total of 2.63 million workers and 321,000 employers have benefited from this Wage Subsidy Programme, involving an expenditure of RM10.4 billion," he said.

The prime minister added that the government has agreed to reopen applications for GKP from Oct 1-31, 2020 to ensure that more micro businesses -- which are eligible but have not yet availed themselves to the GKP -- are able to obtain the financial assistance.

He said that the latest figures from the Department of Statistics Malaysia revealed encouraging developments in economic indicators such as the unemployment rate, manufacturing index, consumption index and others.

"The Ministry of Finance will closely monitor measures to empower the people, support businesses and strengthen the economy to ensure the country's economic recovery continues.

"My cabinet colleagues and I are always open to receiving feedback from the public in order to ensure the effectiveness of the measures implemented by government in alleviating the people's burden," Muhyiddin said.

He added that after the announcement of each economic stimulus package, the government will monitor the implementation for areas that can be further strengthened, and continuous improvements are made to ensure that no citizen is left out from receiving assistance.