KOTA KINABALU, Hardcore poor in Sabah must be given priority in initiatives involving agriculture, fisheries and food industry in the state to help them break free from their current status.

Thus, Chief Minister Datuk Seri Hajiji Noor said he has instructed the Sabah Agriculture, Fisheries and Food Industry Ministry (MAFFI) to prioritise the hardcore poor in their action plans and programmes as part of initiatives to eradicate hardcore poor in the state.

“Under the eKasih data, as at May 18 this year, Sabah’s hardcore poor household heads had dropped to 8,699. I hope more initiatives under MAFFI will involve them. We want to make sure they are lifted out of abject poverty,” he said after his working visit to MAFFI at Wisma Pertanian here today.

Meanwhile, based on the briefing by four departments and four agencies under MAFFI, Hajiji said plans are in place to propel Sabah’s agriculture, fisheries and food industries forward.

Importantly, he said the recently approved Sabah Padi and Rice Board (LPBS) mus
t get underway as soon as possible in order to boost Sabah’s food self-sufficiency level (SSL).

The Chief Minister wants government-linked companies owning unutilised land to be developed for agriculture, particularly padi, as mandated by the State Cabinet, and in this respect, MAFFI could provide assistance in providing the necessary resources.

Earlier, Deputy Chief Minister I Datuk Seri Dr Jeffrey Kitingan who is also Sabah Agriculture, Fisheries and Food Industry said with the setting up of the LPBS, the goal had been set to enhance Sabah’s SSL to 65 per cent in 2030 and 100 per cent in 2035.

Dr Jeffrey said LPBS’s focus will be on boosting padi yields from the average of 2.9 metric tonnes to seven metric tonnes per hectare by 2030, developing abandoned padi fields to increase acreage and opening up new padi fields through partnership with State GLCs and private investments.

“LPBS’s purview will include issuance of export and import licenses and permits as well as packaging and sales of padi and rice i
n Sabah,” he said.

Source: BERNAMA News Agency