National Agricommodity Policy focuses on eight key commodities
Published on: Thursday, March 10, 2022
By: Bernama
Datuk Zuraida Kamaruddin
PUTRAJAYA: The newly launched National Agricommodity Policy 2021-2030 (DAKN 2030) outlines the direction for eight key commodities—oil palm, rubber, timber, cocoa, pepper, kenaf, biomass and biofuel.Plantation Industries and Commodities Minister Datuk Zuraida Kamaruddin said DAKN 2030, a continuation of the National Commodity Policy 2011-2020, was formulated based on the national agenda such as the Shared Prosperity Vision 2030, Sustainable Development Goals, 12th Malaysia Plan and Third National Physical Plan.
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She said the policy is based on five core thrusts—sustainability, productivity, value generation, market development, and inclusivity.
“The policy was developed to ensure all agencies under the Plantation Industries and Commodities Ministry have the same direction based on the five pillars when conducting their activities,” she told reporters after launching DAKN 2030 here Wednesday.
The minister said among the goals of the DAKN 2030 are increasing idea germination in terms of technology, expanding markets and further boosting productivity based on the five pillars.
Zuraida said the policy was developed to ensure the sector would be spurred further and contribute continuously to the country’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP) and export revenue.
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At the same time, she said, DAKN 2030 is expected to lower the income gap and poverty rate especially in the rural areas.
“The agricommodity sector’s contribution to the people’s socioeconomic development over the last decade has been proven, as it has been the source of income for nearly 1.3 million smallholders and provided jobs for nearly a million Malaysians,” she added.
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Zuraida said the country has shown encouraging achievements at the international level as well, including being the world’s biggest exporter of rubber gloves and the second largest palm oil exporter after Indonesia.
She pointed out that the agricommodity sector’s contribution to the GDP grew from RM76.2 billion in 2010 to RM84.3 billion in 2021.
“The 6.1 per cent growth marked a good start in the government’s effort to safeguard the well-being of the smallholders and other industry players in the sector,” she said.
Zuraida said DAKN 2020 also lists 11 flagship programmes and focuses on promoting the agricommodity-based industries and increasing the adoption of the circular economy.
She also said her ministry will also organise the Malaysia International Agricommodity Expo and Summit (MiACEs) in the middle of this year, bringing together all of the country’s agricommodity sectors under a world-class expo.
Meanwhile, asked on the US Customs and Border Protection’s (CBP) seizure of palm oil shipments from Malaysia, Zuraida said her ministry is in the midst of investigating the matter.
“We are still investigating. We do not know from which company. Sometimes the product may not be from Malaysia but another country or a foreign company, perhaps with a small Malaysian interest,” she said.
It was reported that the US CBP has seized four shipments of palm oil from Malaysia valued at nearly US$2.5 million in Baltimore since Feb 11 due to information indicating that the commodity was manufactured by forced labour.
The agency, however, did not identify the Malaysian company that produced the palmitic acid in its statement.
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