IR4.0-enabled farmers essential for national food security

EMPOWERING small Malaysia landholders to directly benefit from their land – done right and at a national scale – could not only enhance national food security but also address digital inclusion, income inequality and propel the country out of the middle-income and low GDP trap.

Rather than amalgamating smallholders into big estates, we need to do precisely the opposite – encourage, support and enable them to become independent agri-producers. If land is absorbed into bigger estates, we are promoting wealth concentration in the hands of few.