KUCHING: Sarawak wants to ensure various government assistance provided for the agriculture sector will be relevant and specific to benefit the targeted group.
Modernisation of Agriculture and Regional Development Minister Datuk Seri Dr Stephen Rundi Utom said it was time to adopt a new approach whereby the industry players provide data on the challenges they faced and type of assistance needed.
“There should be data (on this), instead of assuming what assistance the farmers and smallholders needed.
“Not all agriculture industry players are involved in the same activity, thus they would require different forms of assistance,” he said during a visit to Semongok Agriculture Research Centre here today.
As such, Dr Rundi has ordered the Department of Agriculture (DOA) to observe the actual needs in the agriculture sector in Sarawak.
For instance, he said, the smallholders in the oil palm industry need assistance from the government to improve their farm roads and fertiliser supply.
“Therefore, these are the things that we have to give to them as they have requested for it, then such assistance becomes meaningful,” he explained.
Dr Rundi said if the assistance and subsidies provided were only based on assumption, it would not truly benefit them, which would be a waste too.
“Anything we do has to be in accordance with the desires of those who need help. In addition, fishermen or those in the aquaculture industry need assistance that is quite specific as well,” he said.
He said such data on required assistance was not difficult to obtain as there had already been requests from those in need.
“Let them tell us what they want, then we assist. If not, our target would be incorrect and it would be a waste,” he said.
On another note, he urged staff members of the Semongok Agriculture Research Centre to promote their extensive research outcomes to the public more widely and to head towards commercialising these outcomes.
“It is now up to (the centre) to promote the research outcomes for people who actually want to make use of them in a bigger or more commercial way,” he said.
Dr Rundi also said that the stretch from Semengok to Tarat would be a testbed to show Sarawakians that the state is able to modernise agriculture.
