KOTA KINABALU: The Sabah government has allocated RM2.6bil in its Budget 2025 to improve infrastructure and utilities, addressing long-standing challenges such as road networks, water supply, electricity, and other public amenities.
State Finance Minister Datuk Seri Masidi Manjun, when tabling the budget at the Sabah State Legislative Assembly, on Friday (Nov 15), said that RM1.34bil has been allocated to the Sabah Works Ministry for this purpose.
Of this amount, RM424.53mil is earmarked for the construction and upgrading of roads in urban and rural areas, as well as in small towns. The allocation also covers the building and upgrading of bridges, slopes, government buildings, and other infrastructure projects.
"A total of RM75mil has been allocated to build an alternative road between Kundasang and Ranau towns, to alleviate traffic congestion. This includes the construction of concrete bridges in Pensiangan and Pitas to ease access for students, who currently rely on boats to get to school,” he added.
Masidi also emphasised the government's commitment to addressing the persistent water supply issues in the state. To tackle this, RM729.79mil has been allocated to the Sabah Water Department.
He explained that the allocated funds would be used to implement immediate and short-term solutions, aimed at increasing the capacity and efficiency of the water supply system, ensuring better access to water for the people.
"As part of the medium and long-term strategy, RM174.86mil will be allocated through a federal soft loan, next year,” he added.
"This will fund three projects to upgrade water treatment plants, and replace or enhance booster pumps at plants in Putatan, Beaufort, Papar, Keningau, Lahad Datu, and Kota Kinabalu.
Masidi also noted that to expand internet coverage across the state, the Sabah government plans to install Starlink technology in 300 locations which currently lack internet access.
He further said that the Malaysian Communications and Multimedia Commission (MCMC) will be adding new towers, upgrading existing transmitter stations, and enhancing rural internet centres.
"The 4G internet coverage in populated areas of Sabah has reached 91.18%, while 68.9% now enjoys 5G coverage," he said.
Meanwhile, Masidi highlighted that RM127mil has been allocated to improve the education of Sabah's children. This will cover scholarships, bursaries, and student aid for 7,130 existing students and 3,000 new students.
He added that Sabah students pursuing higher education would receive a one-off IPT Registration Cash Assistance (BUDI) of RM2,000 for Bachelor's Degree students, and RM1,500 for those at the Diploma and Matriculation levels.
"Additionally, students will receive a one-time contribution from the Students of Higher Education in Sabah (Sentosa) of RM300 each, along with subsidised flight tickets for Graduan Rindu Sabah (Subfly), valued at RM600 per person,” he said.
Masidi also noted that RM2.06mil has been allocated for the School Assistance programme, which will benefit 291,275 students, alongside a one-off contribution for School Activities (Sukses) of RM3,000 for each participating school. - Bernama
