Felda settlers can now afford a smile after surge in income - PM Ismail Sabri

MERSING: Prime Minister Datuk Seri Ismail Sabri Yaakob said Felda settlers are now enjoying much better incomes after crude palm oil (CPO) prices surged to record highs recently.

He said the CPO price hit a record RM8,076.50 per tonne on March 2, and this has greatly benefited Felda settlers and the country.

"I can see Felda settlers smiling again over higher incomes following the jump in palm oil prices in the market," he said, citing the example of Kak Aminah from Felda Endau who reportedly earns almost RM8,000 a month now.

Speaking at the Felda Plantation Transformation ceremony at Felda Endau here today, Ismail Sabri said a settler at Felda Lok Heng in Kota Tinggi which he visited earlier told him that his monthly income had reached RM12,000.

"Congratulations to Felda," he said, adding that last year the oil palm industry contributed RM107 billion to the country's exports, with 5.6 million tonnes of fresh fruit bunches (FFB) processed from plantations owned by Felda settlers.

Apart from the increasing incomes of settlers, the prime minister also shared another piece of good news on Felda, regarding FGV Holdings Bhd's huge profits.

"Alhamdulillah, my congratulations to FGV which recorded a RM1.17 billion profit for the financial year 2021, and this will definitely have a positive impact on Felda (Federal Land Development Authority) which now owns 82 per cent of FGV shares," he added.

Amid this joy over higher CPO prices, Ismail Sabri cautioned that the oil palm industry was facing certain challenges which affected the FFB output, such as labour shortage in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic which resulted in a drop of almost one million tonnes of palm oil production in 2021 compared to the year before.

To prevent long-term losses, the government is drawing up strategies under the 12th Malaysia Plan (12MP) by focusing its efforts on reducing dependence on foreign labour through the use of technology and Internet of Things (IoT).

"The Fourth Industrial Revolution should be a part of the priority for every industry and agency so that we will not be left behind in high-value economic activities," Ismail Sabri said.

He expressed appreciation to Felda for supporting the government's aspiration through its Sustainable Farm Initiative 2523 which was introduced by Felda chairman Datuk Seri Idris Jusoh and its management to ensure better farm management to make settlers more competitive.

He said the vision for transformation of Felda farms has a clear objective, that is to boost the incomes of settlers through harnessing technology and mechanisation in their farms.

He said the four core strategies of Felda's mechanisation policy would help reduce labour use by 50 per cent, improve productivity by up to 30 per cent and cut farm operational costs by 20 per cent, giving a major impact and benefit to settlers.

Ismail Sabri said the use of agriculture applications through mechanisation and digitalisation would maintain international accreditation standards which need to be observed to help strengthen the integrity and quality of Malaysian oil palm.

He said Felda's success was due to the efforts of Barisan Nasional (BN) government leaders since the time of Felda's establishment.

He said Felda was set up to eradicate poverty among the rural community especially Malays, and it would not have existed without the struggle of a BN leader, the country's second prime minister, the late Tun Abdul Razak Hussein.

"This agenda has been continued to this day by the BN leadership after that (Abdul Razak's administration) ... I am also a BN leader.

"So, ladies and gentlemen, we want to be thankful like others but the important thing is to realise that Felda's success is due to the struggle of the BN leadership from before until now," he said.

Ismail Sabri said many quarters claimed that they had Felda's interests at heart but there was evidence to show otherwise.

"If people say there are others who love Felda, there is evidence that they are indulging in empty talk. BN is the one that loves Felda and its settlers," he added.

-- BERNAMA