GEORGE TOWN, Oct 6 — The Penang government will be giving out RM500 aid each to a total of 5,262 paddy farmers in Penang this month.
Penang Chief Minister Chow Kon Yeow said the aid is on a one-off basis involving an allocation totalling about RM2.63 million.
The payment will be directly deposited into the bank accounts of paddy farmers registered with the Penang Department of Agriculture.
“We hope this aid will ease the paddy farmers’ burden,” he said in a press conference today.
He added that the paddy farmers have to overcome challenges and obstacles such as weather uncertainty and increases in the costs of fertilisers and agrochemicals for crops.
“The Covid-19 pandemic and the war between Russia and Ukraine were the main contributors to the increase in costs,” he said.
Chow said there is about 12,105ha of paddy fields in Penang with an output of 4,831 metric tonnes per hectare.
“The average rice output in Penang for 2021 is about 5.595 metric tonnes per hectare,” he said.
He said this exceeds the average national output of 4,039 metric tonnes per hectare.
