The government is very committed to the youth development agenda, pledging to help build sustainable and highly innovative human capital through youth empowerment.

Prime Minister Dato' Sri Ismail Sabri bin Yaakob, being the Minister of Youth and Sports from 2008 to 2009, understands the needs of the younger generation more closely.

Talking about youth development, several issues deserve attention, which include improving their socioeconomic status through different initiatives such as housing and business assistance by the government.

Therefore, on National Youth Day 2022, the Prime Minister highlighted that the aspirations and views of the youth are crucial for the government to formulate the future direction of Malaysia. During the official ceremony in commemoration of the National Youth Day 2022 held in May earlier, the Prime Minister had even proposed the appointment of youth representatives as Senators in Dewan Negara, the upper house of the Parliament of Malaysia.

Budget 2023: E-Pemula credit for youth increased to RM200, government to bear e-hailing license fee

During the tabling of Budget 2023, the Minister of Finance announced that two million Malaysian youth aged 18 to 20 and full-time students aged 21 and above will receive the benefits of the e-wallet, known as the e-Pemula credit program, which will be increased from the initial RM150 to RM200 starting next year. The e-Pemula incentive involves an allocation of RM400 million.

“As a student, and being part of the youth group in the digital age, the e-wallet incentive brings added convenience to our daily life including learning,” said Jaayne, 22.

Youth entrepreneurship is another key agenda being looked into. In an effort to encourage entrepreneurship among young people, the government has allocated a total of RM305 million as a special loan facility for youth through SME Bank, Tekun (Tabung Ekonomi Kumpulan Usaha Niaga), Mara (Majlis Amanah Rakyat), BSN (Bank Simpanan Nasional) and Agrobank.

Meanwhile, a specific measure is being implemented to help B40 youth generate income through passenger transportation driving such as taxi, bus and e-hailing services, the government will bear their license fees under the MyPSV program, as well as B2 class motorcycle driving license fees.

For youth who are involved in delivery services using motorcycles, the government will continue to support their capital outlay with the TEKUN Belia Mobilepreneur Scheme worth RM10 million, as a form of employment incentive.

The Pakej Remaja Keluarga Malaysia is another incentive for the youth, specifically. The RM30 monthly pre-paid Internet data plan subscription package will be extended for another three months until April 2023.

"The Pakej Remaja Keluarga Malaysia provided by the government has been helping my learning with the extra Internet access, so that I don’t have to worry too much about data usage constraints. I am sure such initiative will be helpful to many young people," said Faris, 23.

It’s hoped that young people can make good use of those stimuli including cash assistance, employment incentives and job creation measures provided by the government under Budget 2023.