PUTRAJAYA – A bill is being formulated to establish the sole national border agency (SBA), said Home Minister Datuk Seri Saifuddin Nasution Ismail.
He said the cabinet has agreed to the bill proposal to set up a new SBA entity that will use one name and operate as the new border control agency.
Speaking to reporters after the Home Ministry’s monthly assembly here today, he said there are 23 agencies on duty at Bangunan Sultan Iskandar, 14 agencies at Sultan Abu Bakar Complex, and nine in Rantau Panjang.
“The government’s purpose in establishing the SBA is to make the delivery system more efficient and faster, with better coordination among agencies, and to improve the issue of integrity,” he said.
Following the cabinet decision, Saifuddin said that the Home Ministry and Attorney-General’s Chambers have begun work on the bill, which will be tabled in Parliament in the first quarter of this year.
The establishment of SBA, as announced by Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim when tabling Budget 2024 on October 13, is part of the initiative to strengthen the level of national defence and security preparedness.
On November 8, it was reported that the Home Ministry would lead the implementation of SBA to regulate the country’s 141 entry points. – January 9, 2024