RURAL DEVELOPMENT AND THE LEVEL OF PUBLIC FACILITIES PROVISION FOR YOUTH IN MALAYSIA
The national agenda consistently prioritised the rural development and poverty eradications in Malaysia. The Rural Transformation Programme from 2016 till 2020 outlines six focus areas namely, Rural Infrastructure, Youth Development, Economy, Entrepreneurship, Human Capital and Delivery System. Guided by these principles, the strategies and programmes for rural development and poverty eradication have focused on increasing the productivity as well as improving the quality of life. The objective of this research is to evaluate the level of usage and satisfaction towards facilities provided for youth living in the rural areas. The study areas selected are Jengka, Pahang and Kota Samarahan, Sarawak. The variables for the assessment include adequacy ratio, usage satisfaction, accessibility and maintenance of existing public facilities. The results were analysed to measure the level of provision of public facilities provided for the youth who are living in rural areas. It was found that public facilities including multipurpose hall, public library, mosque, temple and church are provided in both study areas. However, their usage among the youth was rather discouraging, except for mosque, musolla and church.