KUALA TERENGGANU, Dec 1 — The Terengganu Legislative Assembly today approved the state budget for 2023 tabled by Mentri Besar Datuk Seri Ahmad Samsuri Mokhtar.

During the winding-up session today, Ahmad Samsuri said the budget was drafted in line with the economic recovery from the Covid-19 disruptions.

He said that based on the Terengganu Strategic & Integrity Institute study with Universiti Malaysia Terengganu, it was found that since July the income for 95.9 per cent of the B40 households and 92.6 per cent of the M40 households in the state has decreased and unchanged.

"At the same time, the prevalence of expenditure for these households has increased namely 86.0 per cent for the B40 group and 90.9 per cent for the M40 segment. Even more troubling, about 72.5 per cent of these households experienced a reduction in savings,” he said.

Therefore, he said the state government has announced various incentives and cash aid in Budget 2023 to inject cash liquidity into the domestic economy through consumer spending and reduce the financial burden of the people

On Monday, Ahmad Samsuri tabled the state’s 2023 Budget comprising RM1.991 billion allocation for operating expenditure; RM500 million for development expenditure and RM30 million for water supply expenditure.

He also announced that RM200 vouchers would be given to women who have just given birth for postpartum care and the continuation of the Pencen Rakyat assistance worth RM600, among other things.

The 2023 budget that carries the theme "Memacu Terengganu Berdaya Tahan” (Driving A Resilient Terengganu) also involves one-off payments worth RM150 to security guards, farmers, breeders, fishermen, tourism industry workers, youths and undergraduates to ease their financial burden. — Bernama