This programme in the Chow Kit area started in 2001 as one of the activity centres of the Welfare Department of the Government of Malaysia.

This activity centre was known as the Pusat Activiti Kanak-Kanak (PAKK). It provided a safe area and activity centre for children from 8.00 am to 5.00 pm.

The volunteers and staff who were at the Centre soon realized that the children and the community in Chow Kit had many issues that was beyond the scope of the activity. One of the shocking realization was that come 5.00 pm, many children had nowhere to go to. They were in the streets! Then we realized that children were being exploited in many ways; including physically and sexually. Then there was child trafficking; even parents were selling their own children. There was an underlying reason for all of these problems and more. The parents of these children we were working with were themselves marginalized and poor. Many of them were drug addicts, sex workers, homeless, to name a few. Besides there were many who were undocumented and/or stateless.

After much brainstorming, planning and collaborative efforts by concerned individuals and staff, the plan for additional services was set. The volunteer based NGO Yayasan Salam Malaysia, realized the need to support the government and took up the challenge. They partnered with JKM. This became a first ever partnership between the government and a non-government organization.

Nur Salam became a reality in 2007.