PETALING JAYA: Subsidies worth RM10.8mil have been provided to offer financial assistance to 167 preschools and 4,441 B40 children across the country, according to Datuk Ramanan Ramakrishnan.
The president of the Malaysian Indian Community Transformation Unit (Mitra) stated that the funds will be utilized to cover preschool fees and breakfast meals for the children.
“Each student will receive a total of RM200 in subsidy, with RM150 allocated for monthly preschool fee subsidies and an additional RM50 for breakfast meals,” he said.
“When considering a year, a total of RM2,400 will be allocated to subsidize each child, benefiting a total of 4,441 children and 167 preschools nationwide. This amounts to a total subsidy of RM10.8mil,” he added in a statement on Friday (Oct 20).
Ramanan, who is also the Sungai Buloh MP, mentioned that Mitra had conducted thorough screenings to ensure that all B40 children on their recipient list receive the subsidy.
“Mitra will ensure the funds are distributed effectively and efficiently and will monitor its progress periodically,” he said.
“The list of subsidy recipients will be displayed on Mitra’s website,” he noted.
Ramanan emphasized the importance of assisting young children in need as they represent the future of the country.
“Empowering children begins with education, and Mitra places great emphasis on the education sector, starting from the preschool level,” he stated.
“We have also distributed laptops to school children all over the country and provided subsidies to B40 university students to support their education,” he further added.
In the previous month, Ramanan announced that a total of RM100mil was allocated to Mitra under Budget 2023. He mentioned that the funds have been fully disbursed and have benefited over 100,000 individuals.
