A CONSISTENT demand and lucrative prices in the market is making farmers turn their attention to cultivating oil palm.
The Modernisation of Agriculture and Regional Development Ministry which is aware of this farming shift said this had resulted in a significant reduction in the planted area for other crops.
To address the issue Minister Datuk Seri Dr Stephen Rundi Utom asserted that his ministry will continue to encourage farmers to maintain their existing farms to avoid over reliance on a single commodity crop.
The commodity sector which comprises mainly oil palm, rubber, pepper, sago, and cocoa, he said, is one of the major contributors to Sarawak’s gross domestic product (GDP).
“It contributed RM12.17 billion to export earnings, or 8.89 per cent of Sarawak’s GDP in 2020.
“In terms of planted area, as of December 31, 2021, total planted area for commodity crops is estimated to be around 1.81 million hectares of which 89 per cent are planted with oil palm,” Rundi said in his ministerial winding up speech in the House today.
He pointed out that under the 12th Malaysia Plan (12MP), the commodity crop planted area is expected to expand to about 2.14 million hectares by 2025.
He assured that his ministry will also continue to promote and encourage private sector participation in developing Native Customary Rights (NCR) land involving an approved area of around 250,000 hectares with an expected investment value of RM4.5 billion.
“Planted area for rubber has decreased from 166,636 hectares in 2018 to 164,282 hectares in 2021.
“For pepper, the planted area has also decreased from 17,134 hectares in 2018 to 7,624 hectares in 2021.
“Meanwhile, the cocoa planted area has drastically decreased from 6,857 to 1,473 and sago from 39,701 hectares to 33,407 hectares in the same period,” he said.
To mitigate the problem Rundi his ministry will strengthen commodities through the establishment of a Sarawak Rubber Industry Board (SARIB), Sago and Nipah Development Board (SNDB), Cocoa Cluster Smallholders Cooperative and the provision of commodity crops production incentives.
