KUALA LUMPUR, Feb 24 — State governments will receive RM150 million under the Ecological Fiscal Transfer for Biodiversity Conservation (EFT) this year compared to RM70 million last year to preserve biodiversity, carry out forest management and reduce state government's dependence on timber products.

KUALA LUMPUR, Feb 24 — The government will simplify procedures to speed up people's infrastructure projects so that issues like dilapidated schools and clinics do not continue to drag on, said Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim.

KUALA LUMPUR, Feb 24 — The maximum individual limit for Amanah Saham Bumiputera (ASB) and Amanah Saham Bumiputera 2 (ASB2) will be increased to RM300,000 from RM200,000 previously, said Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim.

KUALA LUMPUR, Feb 24 — The Social Security Organisation (Socso) will amend its Act to allow disbursement of grant equivalent to 80 per cent of the insured salary value of workers to encourage women to get back into the workforce after long maternity or parental leave, said Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim.

KUALA LUMPUR, Feb 24 — The Home Ministry (KDN) and the Defence Ministry (Mindef) have been allocated RM18.5 billion and RM17.7 billion respectively, Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim announced today.

KUALA LUMPUR, Feb 24 — Khazanah Nasional Bhd will spearhead the formation of Tabung Warisan Negara (National Heritage Fund) to attract private participation in restoring historic heritage buildings.

KUALA LUMPUR, Feb 24 — The government is allocating RM100 million under the Small and Medium Enterprise (SME) Grant Scheme to support business automation and digitalisation activities.

KUALA LUMPUR, Feb 24 — A special team under the Royal Malaysia Police (PDRM) Criminal Investigation Department's Sexual, Women and Child Investigations Division (D11) will be formed to curb child pornography activities.

KUALA LUMPUR, Feb 24 — The recently established National Scam Response Centre (NSRC) has been provided with RM10 million to strengthen its role in combating online fraud and scams.

KUALA LUMPUR, Feb 24 — Agencies under the Ministry of Agriculture and Food Security such as Felda, Felcra and Risda should convert their idle land with acreage of up to 800 acres into agrofood projects, said Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim.

KUALA LUMPUR, Feb 24 — Following are the highlights of Budget 2023 tabled in Dewan Rakyat today by Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim.

KUALA LUMPUR, Feb 24 — Budget 2023 is revised upward to RM388.1 billion, making it the largest allocation in Malaysia’s history, as the government continues to provide support to steer the economy, according to the Ministry of Finance (MoF).

KUALA LUMPUR, Feb 24 — The government has prepared RM725 million in allocations this year for digital connectivity in 47 industrial areas and over 3,700 schools, Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim announced today.

KUALA LUMPUR, Feb 24 — Six flood mitigation projects will be tendered again soon, at the latest by June 2023.

KUALA LUMPUR, Feb 24 — The prosperity that Malaysia experienced in 2022 with much higher revenue following encouraging economic growth is a catalyst for the government to allocate a larger amount in Budget 2023, to ensure the national economy is able to withstand external challenges.

KUALA LUMPUR, Feb 24 — The government is committed to protecting the livelihood of the rakyat, upholding integrity, enhancing a caring and compassionate society, as well as improving the effectiveness of public and private sector delivery systems, Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim said.

KUALA LUMPUR, Feb 24 — Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim is tabling the Malaysia MADANI Budget 2023 in the Dewan Rakyat today.

KUALA LUMPUR, Feb 24 — The ringgit opened flat against the US dollar this morning as investors are focusing on Malaysia’s Budget 2023 tabling today, as well as the United States (US) Personal Consumption Expenditures (PCE) Price Index data to be released tonight, said an analyst.

KUALA LUMPUR, Feb 23 — The Ministry of Tourism, Arts and Culture (Motac) is targeting an influx of 16.1 million foreign tourists with RM49.2 billion in tourism revenue this year.

KUALA LUMPUR, Feb 23 — The ringgit snapped a two-day losing streak to end higher against the US dollar on Thursday, on better local market sentiment amid higher global crude oil prices, analysts said.