KUALA LUMPUR, Sept 12 — Agriculture and Food Security Minister Mohamad Sabu will meet with Sabah Deputy Chief Minister 1 Datuk Seri Jeffrey Kitingan, who is also state agriculture, fisheries and food industry minister, to discuss large-scale padi cultivation in the state.
He said this is among the ministry’s efforts to address rice-related food security issues as well as to discuss cooperation with the private sector to make these efforts a success.
“We will open up padi fields in Sabah soon, and I will meet the Sabah minister of agriculture tomorrow to discuss how to start large-scale padi planting there. We will be able to achieve this through this effort, with the right methods and technology,” he told reporters after officiating the Ministry of Agriculture and Food Security (KPKM) Pavilion at the 19th Malaysian International Halal Showcase (MIHAS) 2023 here today.
“We will soon find the best way to overcome this issue (rice supplies) for the long term,” he said.
He said in dealing with food security issues, the cooperation of all parties, including the state government which has jurisdiction over the land, is needed.
Commenting on some parties misusing agricultural land meant for padi planting for other crops, Mohamad said this may have arisen due to problems of irrigation in these areas, adding that the ministry will look into this matter.
Meanwhile, he has instructed agencies under the KPKM to introduce Malaysian products abroad, especially food following the disproportionate value of exports.
“The value of imported food items into Malaysia is around RM75 billion, but our exports are about RM40 billion which is still unbalanced. In the Prime Minister’s (Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim) recent speech, he emphasised the issue of introducing Malaysian-made products, especially food items.
“We also have officers in Rome, the United States, so we hope that with them and the bodies under the KPKM they will be able to cooperate more, especially with the Malaysia External Trade Development Corporation (Matrade) which is the most important,” he said.
In another development, Mohamad said the ministry had not issued any instructions not to involve the Terengganu Agriculture, Agro-based Industry, Food Security and Commodities Committee chairman Azman Ibrahim in programmes organised by departments and agencies under the KPKM in the state.
Azman, through a post on Facebook yesterday, claimed that he received instructions from several heads of departments and agencies under the KPKM in the state that there was an unwritten instruction from the ministry to no longer involve him in their department’s programmes. — Bernama
