MALAYSIA: Proposal to raise income of rubber tappers

The proposal to increase the income of rubber tappers, who earn less than RM1,000 per month, will be presented shortly.

Rural and Regional Development Minister Datuk Seri Ismail Sabri Yaakob said the proposal would be submitted by the ministry's committee to deal with the rising cost of living.

"The (rising) cost of living is being felt by the rural folk, including rubber tappers, who have their own smallholdings and those tapping on land owned by others. Currently, there are rubber tappers whose income is only RM500 a month.

"That is why we have set up a committee that will focus on raising their income," he told reporters after the ministry's monthly assembly in Putrajaya on 18 Jan 2016. The committee comprises representatives of the Federal Land Consolidation and Rehabilitation Authority (FELCRA), Rubber Industry Smallholders Development Authority (RISDA) and Majlis Amanah Rakyat (MARA), he said.

On tappers who have no land of their own, Ismail Sabri said the ministry would find a way for them to grow vegetables near their homes or on vacant land that does not belong to anyone, as well as abandoned land. "For tappers who have their own rubber smallholdings, the ministry has identified a number of crops that can be grown on their land," he said.

There are around 360,000 rubber tappers in the country. Ismail Sabri said the ministry had outlined both short- and long-term plans to improve the economy of rural communities, in order to face the rising cost of living. "In the short term, the ministry will look into crops, livestock or fish farming, which only need about three months to start generating returns. . . . For the long term, the ministry will study other approaches," he said.

Source: “Bernama” (National News Agency of Malaysia), Kuala Lumpur; 18 Jan 2016
(Syed Rashid Ali, Karachi, Pakistan)