Aspirasi Kampung Sejahtera competition helps create competitive rural community

KUALA LUMPUR, Nov 15 (Bernama) -- A total of 39 villages from two categories involving traditional villages and longhouses as well as three Orang Asli villages were crowned winners of the Aspirasi Kampung Sejahtera Competition (PAKS) organised by the Rural Development Ministry (KPLB).

KPLB secretary-general Datuk Ramlan Harun said nearly RM1 million worth of prizes and incentives were offered by the ministry through the competition to give recognition to villages that successfully expressed the aspirations of the competition.

"These include nine criteria, namely complete infrastructure, high-impact economic activities, viable human capital and good standard of health, cleanliness and cheerfulness, religiousness and spirituality, security, leadership and administration as well as a culture of innovation.

"The five main aspects evaluated in this competition are effective governance, innovation and aspiration, competitive economy, human capital, health and environment as well as community infrastructure and facilities," he said in a statement today.

Ramlan said the main objective of the competition was to mobilise village communities towards creating proactive and competitive rural communities using a bottom-up approach.

In addition, he said the competition was able to create more efficient and effective management of village-level administrative institutions as well as improve the quality of life to produce competitive, initiative, knowledgeable, self-reliant and highly disciplined village communities.

Ramlan added that the competition is also one of KPLB's ongoing efforts towards the vision contained in the Rural Development Policy (DPLB), namely Prosperity, Inclusiveness, Sustainability and Holistic Rural Communities by 2030.

"With the strategic cooperation of relevant ministries and agencies, state governments, non-governmental organisations, corporate companies and other stakeholders, the villages that are crowned as winners are expected to be mentors to other villages as well as catalysts to spur rural socioeconomic development,” he said.

He said winners take home cash prizes amounting to RM30,000, while runners-up recieve RM20,000, and third place RM10,000, and the villages can use the funds for their socio-economic development.

There is also a Special Aspirations category to recognise villages that successfully express their aspirations in line with the rural development policy of creating prosperous rural communities, with a RM5,000 first prize, RM3,000 second prize and a RM2,000 third prize.

In all, a total of 121 villages including 14 Orang Asli villages participated in the competition with RM1,000 given as incentive to each participating village.

Based on PlanMalaysia’s and the ministry’s data, Malaysia currently has 28,303 villages, 19,447 villages in the Peninsula, 5,976 villages in Sarawak, 2,853 villages in Sabah and 27 villages in Labuan.

-- BERNAMA