KUALA LUMPUR: A bipartisan approach is needed to eradicate hardcore poverty, says an economist.
Dr Jain Yassin said the willingness of all parties to work together regardless of political affiliation is an important basis to ensure the effectiveness of poverty eradication efforts.
He said bipartisanship is important because the willingness of all parties to work together would help in hardcore poverty eradication efforts.
He added that this bipartisan concept can be done because Malaysia already has a parliamentary cross-party group, between the opposition bloc and the government, to implement such programmes.
To ensure that any poverty programme has more impact, Jain, who is also a senior lecturer at the Faculty of Management and Business at Universiti Teknologi Mara Sabah, suggested that the government carry out a needs assessment before implementing any initiative.
He said the analysis should take into account factors such as the needs of an area, the readiness of the community to be involved, as well as the suitability of resources available in the area to implement the programme.
“This is important because I see that many government programmes are not sustainable because they are not suitable for the community, the resources available or the geography of the area. That’s why for its survival, there is a need for a monitoring committee so that the programme is sustainable,” he added.
He also said the scope of any poverty eradication programme should be expanded to include capacity building for the community.
On April 29, Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim said the government intends to eradicate hardcore poverty, which he described as disgraceful for a country which is rich in resources such as oil and gas.
Universiti Tun Abdul Razak economist Prof Emeritus Dr Barjoyai Bardai believes that eradicating hardcore poverty is the responsibility of every government.
“This has nothing to do with popularity because looking after the people is a government responsibility and (poverty eradication) should be the government’s priority, no matter what government is in power.
“Efforts to eradicate poverty have existed for the last 70 years, before the country even achieved independence, with various poverty eradication programmes implemented including through the establishment of zakat centres,” he added.
Prof Barjoyai also suggested the government focus on building community capacity through training and technology.
