THE government should promote the use of reusable masks to ease the burden on low-income folk and protect the environment, said DAP’s Charles Santiago.

“Funds can be channelled through a small business entrepreneurship programme that can be expanded to include civil society and community-based organisations that are already producing cloth masks,” the Klang MP told a press conference in the Parliament building today.

He said Putrajaya can work with technical and vocational education and training institutions, as well as Mara and other agencies, that offer design and tailoring classes to start production for the market.

Disposable masks are not environmentally friendly and are costly in the long run for poor households, said Santiago.

He said Vietnam is pioneering the production of reusable, biodegradable masks made from coffee beans. The item only needs to be thrown out after 30 days.

“On top of making them affordable, cloth masks are more environmentally friendly and help mitigate climate change. They will also reduce the number of masks disposed of on a daily basis in the country, which currently stands at 10 million.”

The government has made it mandatory for masks to be worn in public starting August 1 to curb the spread of Covid-19. – August 3, 2020.