SARA AID A BOON TO RETAILERS, SUPPLIERS

KUALA LUMPUR, Jan 9 (Bernama) -- Sumbangan Asas Rahmah (SARA) not only benefits aid recipients, but its impact is also felt by retail traders, supermarkets and suppliers.

The assistance is more than just an initiative on paper. Every purchase made by SARA recipients for daily needs also injects cash flow into businesses, demonstrating that the national economy grows when its benefits are genuinely felt by people across all segments of society.

Checks by Bernama at BabaDona Supermarket in the capital found brisk buying activity as SARA recipients began spending on essential goods after the assistance was credited into their accounts today.

Supermarket manager Kamal Zahurin Khalid said the implementation of SARA has had a positive impact on sales, with the use of identity cards as a payment medium seen as practical and secure.

“In terms of sales, there has indeed been an increase since SARA was introduced. From an operational perspective, the process is simple because payment is made using identity cards; the payment system is also frequently improved and does not experience disruptions often, giving customers greater confidence to shop,” he said.

Kamal Zahurin said that although the product registration process was somewhat challenging at the initial stage due to the involvement of various categories of essential goods, it has since improved, with nearly 90 per cent of products now registered under the SARA system.

A marketing manager at a supplier company for several supermarkets in the capital, Zaitun Shahril Reza, said the implementation of SARA has also had a significant impact on suppliers, including a sales increase of between 30 and 40 per cent compared with before the assistance was introduced.

“The SARA programme helps boost sales and smoothen our supply chain. Many supermarkets are restocking more quickly due to high demand from consumers,” she said.

She said suppliers interested in participating in the programme must submit applications to the Ministry of Domestic Trade and Cost of Living and meet the stipulated criteria before their products can be listed under SARA.

With several improvements introduced to widen its benefits, the disbursement of SARA has seen a significant increase this year, involving 8.1 million recipients with a total allocation of RM8 billion, compared with 5.4 million recipients and an allocation of RM5 billion last year.

Disbursed in stages, the distribution began today with direct crediting first to household recipients and senior citizens without spouses, involving five million recipients, before being extended to 3.1 million single individuals on Jan 16.

-- BERNAMA