Malaysia eyes farming as economic crisis rolls on
Malaysia eyes farming as economic crisis rolls on
By Reme Ahmad
KUALA LUMPUR (Reuters): As Asia's economic crisis rolls on, the country which has launched satellites and aims to be home to state-of-the-art multimedia technology is advising its citizens to return to the soil.
Malaysia is looking to lease out land for commercial vegetable farming, wants to boost paddy cultivation and will be reviving 300 abandoned fish ponds.
Green is suddenly in, and Malaysians are being asked to farm food locally to munch their way out of the country's economic troubles.
Deputy Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim sprouted the idea by telling Malaysians they should start vegetable patches at home.
The move would reduce Malaysia's food import bill, estimated at 10 billion ringgit (US$3.85 billion) this year.
"We should all plant vegetables at home. This will help reduce expenditure," Anwar said recently.
"I would like to inform you that I have already started growing vegetables the hydroponic way."
Between 1990 and 1995, vegetables made up 13 percent of total food import costs, dairy products 12 percent and fish eight percent, according to a recent research paper by two agricultural academics.
Although plants thrive in Malaysia's lush, tropical climate, the country imports 40 percent of its vegetables, according to the New Straits Times, from the staple paddy to the lowly onion.
The call by Anwar came amid news that the price of condensed milk, sugar and flour -- mostly made from imported items -- will be raised from Feb. 1 due to the weak local currency.
The ringgit has fallen by some 30 percent against the U.S. dollar since a regional economic crisis erupted in July, making imports considerably more expensive.
One of Asia's "Tiger" economies has suddenly realized it is vulnerable and must grow more of its own food.
Responding quickly to Anwar's signal, officials are focusing on converting abandoned land and ponds into fruitful hives of activity.
The Agriculture Ministry said it was considering allowing the leasing of some of its land to those interested in farming vegetables on a commercial scale.
In central Negeri Sembilan state, a state official said 300 idle ponds would be redeveloped into fish farms.
Green Book
Anwar recently announced that the government had increased the national food fund by 100 million ringgit ($26 million) to 700 million ringgit to boost local food production.
The Agriculture Ministry is selling eight types of seeds, including chilies, spinach and cucumbers, in small packets to encourage citizens to begin home vegetable gardening. The packets cost four ringgit ($1.03) apiece.
This is not the first time the government has called on the people to return to tilling the soil.
Faced with economic difficulties in the 1970s, Malaysia launched the Green Book plan by calling for the mass planting of vegetables. It even distributed pamphlets on how to plant vegetables.
Malaysia still grows a lot of trees whose products are widely exported, especially palm oil, rubber and timber. But home-grown foods, including paddy and vegetables, are not enough to meet local demand.
A decade of strong uninterrupted growth led many Malaysian land owners to convert their holdings into property projects. Others abandoned back-breaking farm work for higher-paying jobs in cities.
"Because of labor shortage, good agricultural land is lying idle. Between 800,000 and one million hectares of land is not fully utilized," agricultural expert Abdul Aziz Abdul Rahman told the New Sunday Times recently.
About two million foreign workers now do jobs long abandoned by Malaysians in the plantation and construction sectors and sanitation services.
Local agriculture produce withered as Malaysians made their own cars, launched two satellites, raised the world's tallest buildings and sought investments from world-class multimedia companies.
Malaysia's "Vision 2020" policy aims to turn the country into an industrialized nation. It has moved away from its agricultural past and no longer wants to be a cheap production center for global electronic products.
Last year the agriculture, livestock, forestry and fishing sector grew only 2.2 percent while gross domestic product surged 9.7 percent.
The star sectors last year were construction and manufacturing. Construction expanded by 14.2 percent and manufacturing by 12.2 percent.
But the slumping ringgit and falling stock prices have brought Malaysians down to earth.
"Obviously plans have to be changed when you have problems like this. You have to go back to self-sufficiency," said Kevin Chew, economist at Caspian Securities.
But after a decade of abandoning farm work for air-conditioned offices and factories, it may be difficult to convince Malaysians that working under the sun is more lucrative.
Returning to the soil does not necessarily mean Malaysia is turning back the clock, some observers say.
"It would be the ultimate triumph for Malaysia to march proudly into the ranks of developed nations, and have the onions to prove it as well," Abdul Razak Ahmad wrote in the New Straits Times.