74,600 jobs for in agricultural sector

Posted on August 12, 2011 08:14 PM

According to the Economic Transformation Programme (ETP) report by Pemandu, an additional 74,600 jobs for the agriculture sector and increase farmers' income by 4 times are expected by 2020.

The sector also targets to increase the Gross National Income (GNI) by RM28.9 billion, to reach RM49.1 billion in 2020, more than double its current size. To achieve this, the report said, the sector should capture higher value for what the country produce and increase the productivity.

The National Key Economic Area laboratory on agriculture identified 16 entry-point projects (EPPs) and business opportunities to spur the establishment of market-driven, industrial scale and integrated agriculture-related businesses.

The report said the sector should also focus on efforts such as expanding the production of premium grade fruits and vegetables and shrimps for export as well as developing premium processed food.

They include a transformation from fragmented and small-scale farms to integrated, clustered and large scale agri-businesses; moving from production-centric to market-driven and also changing from low value-added to higher value- added products.

To achieve the aspirations, it said, the sector would require cumulative funding of RM22 billion over the next 10 years, with 62% coming from the private sector. [Rufaidah]