LET’S give credit where it’s due.
But it has largely remained empty talk.
Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim, however, is the first to walk the talk. He has announced an allocation of RM1bil to kick start the “five padi planting seasons in two years” plan from this month, with RM5bil as the overall figure.
The project, covering 11,000ha of fields in the Muda Agricultural Development Authority (Mada) area, is expected to increase padi yield by 15% and the income of 6,100 padi farmers by 43%.
The entire cost of the project, to be carried out in stages, will come up to RM5.376bil and the Federal Government hopes it will be a game changer.
What needs to be mentioned here is that the Mada area is in Kedah, which is under a PAS government.
The population who will benefit, including the farmers, are predominantly Malays who probably support the Islamist state government.
But politics has not been allowed to be a stumbling block to the efforts to improve the livelihood of farmers, who may not even cast a vote for the Madani government.
The PM has rightly put aside politics and focused instead on the potential advantages, including increased productivity within the same amount of time, while increasing the farmers’ income. If successful, it will mean economic stability throughout the years.
Besides helping to reduce the financial instability that often comes with seasonal farming, it could also encourage younger people to take up padi farming as a livelihood and not equate it to poverty.
Modern farming methods, including the use of drones, will help the farmers hit their targets.
Beside training school-leavers to be drone pilots, there will be other jobs created, both directly in farming and in related sectors such as transportation, processing, and marketing.
The spin-off can also include agrotourism, which has been successfully implemented by farmers in Sekinchan, Selangor.
There is no shame in the Kedah farmers learning from their counterparts in Selangor. Joint ventures can also be mooted.
The government has in fact encouraged the use of agricultural technology to boost rice yields through the Ala Sekinchan Large-Scale Smart Padi Field (SMART SBB) programme.
The “five seasons in two years” project will also mean better utilisation of resources, as more frequent planting cycles can lead to more efficient use of land, water, and other agri- cultural inputs. This can maximise the productivity of the available farmland.
It will also help Malaysia reduce its food import bill. Malaysia’s food imports hit RM71.6bil in 2023, with grains and grain products alone making up RM10.84bil.
Imports of animal feed material came up to RM7.85bil, while meat and meat products amounted to RM6.61bil.
We imported 1,358,718 tonnes of rice in 2024 from Cambodia, India, Indonesia, Japan, Myan-mar, Pakistan, South Korea, Thai-land, Taiwan, Vietnam, and Spain.
If the Kedah farmers hit their targets, it will help cut our import bills and contribute to national food security by ensuring a more consistent and reliable supply of rice, Malaysia’s dietary staple.
There’s much to be done, though. The farmers will need plenty of support and help for modern farming, including training, infrastructure development, research and development, and market competitiveness.
A huge amount of money has been allocated and there is no room for failure. It will require careful planning, investment in infrastructure, and adoption of advanced agricultural practices.
There are other factors such as water availability, soil health, and climate conditions that must be carefully managed to ensure the success of this initiative.
Most importantly, Kedah must put politics aside, and forget those claims that it has been left out of development.
A veteran journalist, Datuk Seri Wong Chun Wai is currently the chairman of Bernama. The views expressed here are solely the writer’s own.
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Wong Chun Wai
Wong Chun Wai began his career as a journalist in Penang, and has served The Star for over 35 years in various capacities and roles. He is now group editorial and corporate affairs adviser to the group, after having served as group managing director/chief executive officer. On The Beat made its debut on Feb 23 1997 and Chun Wai has penned the column weekly without a break, except for the occasional press holiday when the paper was not published. In May 2011, a compilation of selected articles of On The Beat was published as a book and launched in conjunction with his 50th birthday. Chun Wai also comments on current issues in The Star.
