High time to tackle poverty

4 to 5 per cent of population ‘poor’

THERE are 17,000 people registered with the authorities who rely on (Baitulmal) financial assistance for their livelihood, according to the Community Development Department (JAPEM).

The department’s statement was taken from a report that was published by the department, which further added that amongst this number of 17,000 recipients, some 13,000 of them are also provided additional financial assistance from the department.

Nur Judy Abdullah, a volunteer advisor with the non-government organisation, “Sounds of Hope”, which operates under the auspices of the Women Business Council, explained how these numbers could overlap with regards to the registered list with Baitulmal and the list accounted for by JAPEM.

“Out of the 17,000 people registered with Baitulmal, some are receiving $500 financial assistance per month from Baitulmal to rent a house and may also receive a further $60 educational assistance per child from JAPEM. This is how the numbers can overlap,” she said.

When asked whether this number was a true representation of the total number of people living under the poverty line in Brunei Darussalam, she replied: “There is no way that this is the definitive number.

We know that there are more that have not been picked up on our radar.”

However, according to JAPEM, the total number of poor in Brunei Darussalam may be “four to five per cent of the total population”.

She described the three categories in which these people may have slipped under their attention.
“First are those that are still not accounted for in the system. Then there are those who don’t know about the welfare system or are unaware of how to apply for benefits. Thirdly there are those who have applied for welfare but whose applications are still being processed and this takes time.

“Giving them monthly benefits is just a short-term solution, what’s most important is also to provide them with skills through training and further education in order to help them successfully break out of the vicious cycle of poverty,” Nur Judy pointed out.

According to statistics from UN data, the country’s gross domestic product per capita as of 2007 stood at $31,759. However, as yet, there are neither official statistics nor even a definitive benchmark for the poverty line in Brunei Darussalam.

Towards this end, a Special Committee on Poverty was recently established under the auspices of the National Council on Social Issues. One of its first tasks was to establish the Taskforce for the Research on Poverty in Brunei Darussalam.

Amongst its objectives are to have a definition of poverty which is applicable to the context of Brunei Darussalam; to study and analyse the root causes of poverty in the country and make recommendations on how to address them; to set up a comprehensive database on the sector of population living in poverty that includes the elderly, persons with special needs, single parents and the unemployed; as well as to study and identify the categories of the poor including their size, characteristics and geographical distribution.
All this was in response to the call made by His Majesty the Sultan and Yang Di-Pertuan of Brunei Darussalam during the declaration of the Brunei Vision 2035 in March last year when the monarch called for “zero poverty by 2035″.

The point was driven home further on July 14, when the monarch made an address concerning Zakat and poverty by focussing on three specific groups in Brunei — the poor, the poorer and those in debt — and asked whether these groups of people no longer existed in Brunei.

“The answer is they still do,” said His Majesty who went on to question how such a large balance of the Zakat could still exist as the purpose of the Zakat is to be distributed to those in need.

“Zakat must not be withheld as poverty can drive an individual to disaster,” said His Majesty, illustrating his point by bringing up the issues of crimes committed due to poverty that could even drive a desperate individual to suicide.

“Poverty can also drive such a person to change religion and this is a major disaster,” the monarch said, adding that “many evil things can happen to those in debt”.

In the meantime, whilst this special taskforce begins its work, other government agencies such as the Islamic Religious Council, the Community Complain Unit and the Community Development Department continue to help ease the suffering of the poor in the country through monthly financial benefits, housing benefits and pensions such as for the elderly, the divorcees, widows, the disabled, unemployed, orphans and abandoned children, as well as a micro-credit programme for unemployed women to start their own small business.

Other than that, an informal network of volunteers is also contributing their time, talent and resources to aid the poor. One such non-government organisation is “Sounds of Hope”. At present the group operates under the auspices of the Women Business Council and are also individually registered members with JAPEM.
One such effort is through the upcoming “Charity Gala Night” on October 3, which is being organised to raise more funds for the poor and assist them in various ways, specifically in areas of skills training and further education.

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