KUCHING: The Sarawak government is presently conducting a study on Rural Growth Centres (RGCs) and Small Isolated Rural Communities towards enhancing the standard of living of the rural folk.

Assistant Minister of Native Land Development Datuk Roland Sagah Wee Inn said the study, which is carried out by the Sarawak Planning Unit (SPU), aimed at proposing a development plan for improving the standard of living of small isolated rural communities and their surrounding areas in relation to the RGCs.

“This study covers a total of 11 approved RGCs and 15 proposed RGCs and all the 5,000 small isolated rural communities and their surrounding areas outside major towns,” he said when replying to Ngemah assemblyman Alexander Vincent yesterday.

Sagah said a decision will be made on whether to have more RGCs across Sarawak pending the outcome of the study by the SPU under the Chief Minister’s Office.

He added that these centres would also offer employment in line with reducing rural-urban migration and rural poverty, thereby enhancing the standard of living among the rural folk.

Sagah pointed out that these RGCs would also play a role in engaging the rural community in the commercial sector to increase their income.

On the components of RGCs, he said they comprised infrastructure amenities, site preparation, access roads and utilities. He added that the Sarawak government also had various economic development and agriculture development programmes that came along with the RGCs.

Assistant Minister of Rural Electricity Datuk Dr Abdul Rahman Junaidi told the august House that various villages from Lutong to Tudan Desaras Senadin in Miri had been approved for connection of power supply under Additional and Late Applications Fund (Alaf).

“A total of 319 applications have been received so far,” he said in a reply to Piasau assemblyman Datuk Sebastian Ting.

Dr Abdul Rahman added: “Subject to the survey outcome, houses that can be connected will enjoy electricity supply by end of 2019.”