THE current unemployment situation in Sabah is a cause for serious concern. The unemployment rate in the second quarter of 2023 stands at a significant 7.7pc.
Additionally, incidents of extreme poverty in Sabah have seen an increase, reaching the highest in Malaysia at 1.2pc in 2022, considerably higher than the national rate of 0.2pc.
Based on the data obtained from the Department of Statistics Malaysia (DOSM), Sabah’s poverty incidence in urban areas is estimated to be 0.5pc in 2022, however it is 2.1pc in rural regions.
This indicates that the ability of the population in rural areas to improve the local economy is highly alarming.