RURAL RESIDENTS’ PERCEPTIONS ON THE POVERTY ALLEVIATION AND GOVERNANCE IN SARAWAK, MALAYSIA

Abstract

Poverty alleviation has continuously become one of the main concerns of the socio-economic policy worldwide. This crucial phenomenon is bounded on necessity toward monetary and comprehends by social, economic, political, and physiological aspects. In Malaysia, although the New Economic Policy in 1971 has succeeded in reducing the country's poverty incident, poverty's pocket continues to exist with high incidences of poverty among specific ethnic groups and localities. For instance, rural poverty among the Iban community in Sarawak has occurred since Malaysian independence. Therefore, this paper examines the rural residents' perceptions of the State's role in poverty alleviation in Sarawak using a qualitative approach. Findings revealed that although the government has various programs to alleviate poverty, the social assistance related to poverty was not efficiently distributed in Sarawak's rural areas. This study also revealed that a lack of social infrastructures, such as road accessibility, has significantly influenced social assistance's efficiency distribution in rural areas.