Getting youths into commercial farming

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SIBU: Pertubuhan Belia Kebangsaan Bersatu Sarawak (Saberkas) and the Agriculture Department are optimistic about getting more youths to venture into commercial agriculture with the establishment of their joint-venture project, Taman Kekal Pengeluaran Makanan (TKPM).

FINE SPECIMEN: Fatimah checks a banana tree at Dynasty Development plantation. Squatting on her left is Abu Seman while standing at second left is Paul.

FINE SPECIMEN: Fatimah checks a banana tree at Dynasty Development plantation. Squatting on her left is Abu Seman while standing at second left is Paul.

Saberkas’ Agriculture and Cottage Industry chairman Datin Fatimah Abdullah said the TKPM project located in Kabuloh, about 45 kilometres from here, is expected to start its first planting in June after they gathered enough participants for the project.

Aimed at helping the participants to earn at least RM3,000 per month, TKPM project would need 60 participants who would have selected through interviews.

“Some RM2.2 million has been approved by the federal government for the project.

“The amount which is mainly for land clearing and building of infrastructure would be given in stages through the Ministry of Agriculture and Agro-based Industry,” she said.

So far they have received RM359,000 of the total amount for building roads and drains in the project site on 200 hectares of gazetted land, she said.

“The gazetted land has been divided into 60 lots and each participant will be given about two to four hectares,” she said, adding that the land would be rented at a rate of RM200 per ha per year.

Fatimah, who is Assistant Minister of Modernisation of Agriculture (Home Economics and Training) spoke about this to reporters after she visited two banana plantations in Kanowit, yesterday.

The plantations are Dynasty Development in Sungai Menyan and Dole Sebiro Banana Farm in Durin.

Besides soil study they also have identified nine types of short-term food crop to be planted for fast return.

The plants include sweet pumpkins, papayas, bananas, watermelons, chilies, longan, and vegetables.

“If this project is successful, we hope to extend it to other places in the state,” she said, adding that it was also to answer a call from Chief Minister Pehin Sri Abdul Taib Mahmud to get more youths into commercial agriculture.

She added that like other farmers, the participants also can apply for various types of aid under the Agriculture Department.   On the project site in Kabuloh, she said it was a strategic location as it is not far from the main road and its target market are the people of Brunei and Miri.

The most recent interview for participants in the project was held in December last year.

As the project is still short of participants, another interview is expected to be held any time soon.

To be eligible, one must be a Saberkas member and below 51 years of age. Fatimah was accompanied during her visit by an executive committee member of Saberkas, Abu Seman Jahwie; state Agriculture Department director Paul Vincent Ritom; and a shareholder of Dynasty Development, Dr William Ting.