Laying foundation for stronger young generation

Six initiatives under the “Orang Muda Johor” (OMJ) agenda will lay the foundation for a more resilient and capable young generation, say youth associations.

Johor Youth Council president Aznan Tamin said the introduction of OMJ was something that youths in the state had been wishing for and he was glad it had now been realised by Johor Mentri Besar Datuk Onn Hafiz Ghazi with the recent budget announcement.

“This shows the government’s commitment to mobilise more youths so we can also be part of the state’s development,” said Aznan.

Aznan says the allocation for the council will be used to strengthen cooperation among the youth associations it oversees.“This can be done under the ‘Jelajah Aspirasi Orang Muda Johor’ programme which has been allocated RM1.5mil for next year,” he said, noting that the programme was under the OMJ agenda.

He said the six initiatives under OMJ were Johor youth leadership, youth aspiration, youth education, JB Sports City, Xtif Johor and improving sports facilities.

“I am also thankful for the allocation given to Johor Youth Council, which is aimed at strengthening cooperation among youth associations under the council.

“I hope young Johoreans will make use of the opportunities created by the schemes.

“These include the education loan scheme that will receive RM15mil, and Johor Education Foundation (RM11mil) under the agenda,” he said.

Meanwhile, Gerakan Belia 4B Malaysia (Johor) chairman Khairul Azlan Sulong lauded the state government for giving allocations to youth associations including RM250,000 for international programmes and RM500,000 to strengthen youth-owned businesses.

“Now, the youth groups must rise to the challenge and perform better,” he said.

He also said the RM200,000 allocation for youth groups to conduct disaster management training was crucial too as Johor was often affected by floods.

“Another RM200,000 has also been allocated for a state-level volunteer day and RM50,000 to conduct knowledge-transfer sessions with volunteer-based non-governmental organisations.

“We are also thankful to the Federal Government for the development of Hospital Sultanah Aminah 2, the road expansion from Sedenak to Simpang Renggam and Universiti Sains Islam Malaysia Teaching Hospital Complex in Kota Tinggi,” he added.

During the tabling of Johor’s 2024 budget last month, Onn Hafiz said the budget, themed “Driving Development, Prospering the People”, had six cores covering governance, economic development, social safety net, facilities and basic needs, cleanliness and environmental sustainability, as well as youth.

He also said the budget would be implemented through 29 strategies and 99 initiatives.