KOTA KINABALU: Malaysia continues to be economically resilient amid the second wave of the global supply crisis, says Datuk Chan Foong Hin.
The Deputy Agriculture and Food Security Minister said that currently, businesses still come to Malaysia, transactions and activities are still rolling, while food supply remains consistent.
“Although there are hiccups here and there, economic activities are still ongoing, and this shows that Malaysia, compared with other countries in this region and Asia for that matter, is still resilient,” he said.
Chan said this when opening the Sabah International Food Expo (SIFEX) 2026 at the Sabah International Convention Centre here, Saturday (April 25).
He said the focus of the Federal Government was to ensure a consistent supply of food, fuel and energy because a consistent supply with occasional disruptions is better than having the supplies cut off.
He said measures such as the targeted subsidies of fuel, social protection programmes like the Sumbangan Tunai Rahmah (STR), Sumbangan Asas Rahmah (SARA), Rahmah Madani sale and so on, were aimed at helping the people get by.
Self-sufficiency programmes are also introduced and encouraged to increase and maintain food sources within the community, Chan said.
These are part of the many measures taken to make sure that Malaysians can still get through these uncertain times, he stressed.
Speaking about the SIFEX expo, he said such events held in Sabah prove that the state remains a preferred travel and business destination for many.
Chan said business-to-business and business-to-customer dealings and networking are present, further securing economic growth for participating partner countries.
He commended the organisers of SIFEX for their successful hosting of this expo, which is running for the fourth year.
SIFEX 2026 brings over 400 food and beverage booths from Sabah, Sarawak, Peninsula Malaysia, Indonesia, the Philippines and Taiwan to visitors and ends Sunday (April 26).
