KUALA LUMPUR, Oct 16 — The government is developing 4,839 hectares of land in Sabah and Sarawak for paddy cultivation, the Dewan Negara was told today.
Deputy Prime Minister Datuk Seri Ahmad Zahid Hamidi said it would involve 2,159 hectares of land in Sabah, namely in Beluran and Kota Belud, and 2,680 hectares in Batang Lupar in Sarawak.
“The plan of 50,000 hectares is meant to be a long-term plan, but so far 4,839 hectares have been approved for development (paddy cultivation) in Sabah and Sarawak,” he said during a question and answer session.
Ahmad Zahid, who is also the Rural and Regional Development Minister was responding to a question from Datuk Seri Mohd Shafie Apdal (Warisan-Semporna) regarding the 50,000 hectares paddy planting project in Sabah and Sarawak.
The deputy prime minister said the plan to develop the affected areas for paddy cultivation, which is aimed at improving the country’s self-sufficiency level (SSL), had been discussed with the Premier of Sarawak and the Chief Minister of Sabah.
He said Felcra Berhad had been tasked to develop the area into large-scale paddy estates, following its success in developing more than 4,500 hectares for paddy planting in Seberang Perak.
“Felcra borrowed US$50 million from the World Bank to develop the Seberang Perak paddy estate and has repaid the loan.
“A total of 4,500 hectares has been developed, producing five metric tonnes per hectare or 22,500 metric tonnes per season,” he said.
To a question from Datuk Seri Ismail Abd. Muttalib (PN-Maran) on abandoned land to be developed, he said, Felcra would also look into the potential to increase food security other than rice, like chicken, eggs and meat.
“There are various categories of land under Felcra, the under-utilised or even unutilised land that we are developing,” he said. — Bernama
