KUALA LUMPUR: The Ministry of Rural Development has agreed to coordinate the distribution of dividends of RM189.08 million through the Rubber Industry Smallholders Development Authority (RISDA) and FELCRA Bhd, said Prime Minister Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin.

Of the amount, RM82.03 million is the 2020 dividend from RISDA, while RM107.05 million is the final total income payout derived from additional profit from projects in 2020.

On the RISDA dividend, he said it would be distributed to 16,080 rubber and oil palm smallholders under the Cluster New Planting Plan (RTBB) and 15,165 smallholders engaged in Commercial Replanting (TSK), involving an area of 39,430 hectares throughout country.

"Today, I understand that RISDA also distributes corporate zakat (tithe) to more than 4,000 asnaf among smallholders (deserving recipients) and selected religious institutions throughout Malaysia with a zakat value of RM2.48 million," he said when opening the RISDA and FELCRA Dividend Presentation Ceremony 2021 here, today.

On FELCRA’s final distribution payout, Muhyiddin said 58,826 FELCRA participants nationwide would receive the payout in stages, starting today.

“The distribution of the FELCRA 2020’s final income distribution is the result of the net profit from 890 participant-owned plantation projects developed by FELCRA.

"The remaining 327 projects consist of projects that have not have any yield and are in the replanting phase," he said.

In a statement, FELCRA said its total final distribution of RM107.05 million was higher than RM83.82 million in 2019.

For 2020, it said FELCRA recorded a total profit of RM204.49 million, an increase of 19.51 per cent from RM171.10 million distributed in 2019.

It said the oil palm average price of fresh fruit bunches (FFB) scenario also lent support to the increase in the 2020 distribution amount.

"FFB was recorded at RM492 per metric tonne, an increase of 35.91 per cent compared to RM362 per tonne in 2019," he said.

FELCRA said the average price of crude palm oil (CPO) also increased 30.45 per cent to RM2,767 per metric tonne in 2020 compared to RM2,121 in 2019.

"Even though the prices of commodities in the market are very encouraging, FELCRA was affected by the COVID-19 pandemic due to the lack of skilled manpower to harvest and collect oil palm fruits in the plantations," he said.

However, Deputy Rural Development Minister I Datuk Seri Abdul Rahman Mohamad expressed confidence that FELCRA’s income distribution in 2021 will be higher than that of 2020.

This is supported by higher commodity prices and continued demand from China, India and Middle Eastern countries, he told reporters after the ceremony.

-- BERNAMA