Dana Belia 1Malaysia launched to mobilize youth to action

The Dana Belia 1Malaysia is a grant worth RM20 million funded by Yayasan 1MDB. It was launched in January 2011 to provide young people with a platform to express their hopes, ideas and creativity through projects that promote unity.

Created to engage young Malaysians between 15 and 40 years old, the fund provides an avenue to initiate their own projects centred on the theme ‘Nurturing Unity’, without the additional burden of seeking funds. Application for the fund was governed by an evaluation panel headed by the Prime Minister himself.  All the projects addressed three main criteria – focus on nurturing unity in Malaysia, have a multiplier effect on the general community, and to be led by young people.

As of August 2011, almost RM4 million has been allocated and disbursed to nearly 90 successful recipients that applied through various channels including myHarapan, BN Youth Lab and Media Prima through a reality TV show “Sejuta Impian”.

Proposals from all kinds of categories are accepted, including businesses, as long as it will benefit a lot of people and not limited to personal gains. The approved projects are chosen because they are expected to bring positive changes to the community, have high spill-over benefits and will galvanize youths to action

For more information on Dana Belia and how to apply, please log on to www.danabelia.com or interact with Dana Belia community on Facebook and Twitter.