MADANI GOVT LISTENING TO THE PEOPLE, COMMITTED TO LEARN AND IMPROVE - MOHAMAD SABU

KUALA LUMPUR, Nov 22 (Bernama) -- The MADANI government will always listen to the people and ensure that every policy implemented is based on the needs and welfare of the people, said Agriculture and Food Security Minister Datuk Seri Mohamad Sabu.

He said various efforts had been made for the well-being of Malaysians during the two years of the MADANI government, but admitted that there was room for improvement, with the ministry he led remaining committed to learning and improving itself.

"Two years may seem short, but it is a period full of challenges, learning, and success. The MADANI government was built on the foundation of unity, justice, transparency, and caring for the people.

"During this period, we have worked together to ensure that this agenda is implemented with empathy and trust. Our journey is still long. The MADANI government is not just a slogan, but a struggle to create a better Malaysia for the present and future generations," he said in a statement here today.

Mohamad, who is also the president of AMANAH, called on all parties to work together to make the Malaysia MADANI agenda under the leadership of Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim a success, which seeks to make Malaysia a prosperous, competitive and respected country in the eyes of the world. 

Through the statement, Mohamad also expressed his gratitude to those involved with the Ministry of Agriculture and Food Security (KPKM) such as farmers, fishermen, breeders, food industry entrepreneurs and civil servants, for their support, criticism and suggestions, which have enabled them to face various challenges throughout these two years.

"During these two years, we were confronted with various issues such as the global economy, the threat of climate change and the impact of the COVID 19 pandemic which is still felt in several agricultural sectors but KPKM continues to take steps to give the best to the people," he said.

Reviewing the efforts of KPKM in these two years, Mohamad said 11 measures have been taken, including large-scale onion planting efforts to reduce onion imports by up to 30 per cent by 2030, increasing pineapple production by more than 100 per cent from 800 containers in January to 1,727 containers in October this year.

It also includes the export of fresh durian to China which is expected to add to the country's export value by up to RM1.8 billion in 2030, restructuring chicken subsidies which can save the people almost RM100 million a month and the supply and price of chicken has remained stable to this day.

KPKM has also increased and expanded the MADANI Agro Sales programme so that the people have access to food supplies with savings of up to 30 per cent from market prices and continued to provide subsistence allowances and diesel subsidies to fishermen as well as monthly cash assistance through the MADANI Agro Commodity Scheme to farmers.

Mohamad also referred to efforts to increase the amount of assistance under the Padi Price Subsidy Scheme from RM360 per tonne to RM500 per tonne as well as increasing the padi purchase floor price from RM1,200 per tonne to RM1,300 per tonne.

KPKM also provides imported rice subsidies to the residents of Sabah, Sarawak and Labuan worth RM23 million per month to help the residents of these regions absorb the effects of rising world rice prices, in addition to initiating large-scale padi and rice reforms.

-- BERNAMA