Kota Kinabalu: Sabah is focusing on food security, logistics efficiency and business resilience to address medium- and long-term cost of living pressures.
Chief Minister Datuk Seri Hajiji Noor said a total of RM102.86 million had been allocated under the 13th Malaysia Plan (13MP) for food security projects.
He said it was aimed to increase agricultural, livestock and fisheries output to reduce dependence on imports and stabilise food supply.
“The ultimate goal is to improve the self-sufficiency level and ensure stable and adequate food supply under any economic condition,” he said in response to a question by Datuk Seri Mohd Shafie Apdal (Warisan – Senallang) at the State Legislative Assembly sitting, Monday.
Hajiji said five districts have been identified as food production valleys, namely Keningau, Tenom, Nabawan, Tongod and Tambunan.
He said projects such as the Keningau Integrated Livestock Centre and dairy farming initiatives in Sook would help reduce reliance on imported meat and dairy products, adding logistics improvements, including the expansion of Sepanggar Port, were expected to enhance cargo capacity and reduce transport costs.
“This will help curb price increases caused by high sea freight charges,” he said.
Hajiji said the State also worked with the Federal Government through the National Cost of Living Action Council (Naccol) and studies by Universiti Malaysia Sabah (UMS) to stabilise prices through structural reforms.
He said efforts to strengthen micro, small and medium enterprises would continue to reduce reliance on imports and support economic resilience.
He also said the Sabah Government supports Federal measures to cushion rising living costs and global fuel price increases.
“Global oil price increases and energy supply disruptions arising from conflicts in West Asia could have a cascading effect on Sabah’s economy.
“The situation could lead to higher operational, logistics and market costs, which in turn would raise inflationary pressure.
“This will affect the people’s purchasing power, increase the burden of living costs and slow economic growth momentum,” he said.
Hajiji said the current price of RON95 petrol remained at RM1.99 per litre, while subsidised diesel was fixed at RM2.15 per litre for Sabah, Sarawak and Labuan.
He said the State Government consistently emphasised the importance of maintaining diesel subsidies in Sabah to control transport costs.
“This is critical to prevent cost increases from being passed on to consumers and to ensure the sustainability of local businesses,” he said.
Hajiji said the Federal Government had also established a Crisis Management Task Force to monitor fuel and energy supply and formulate mitigation measures.
He said the task force would also focus on price control and enforcement to curb smuggling and abuse.
