GOVT DRAWING UP STRATEGIES TO ENSURE FOOD SECURITY - DPM FADILLAH

09/04/2023 08:49 PM

KUCHING, April 9 (Bernama) -- The government is formulating several strategies to strengthen food security in the country, said Deputy Prime Minister Datuk Seri Fadillah Yusof.

Fadillah, who is also Minister of Plantation Industries and Commodities, said the ministry and the Ministry of Agriculture and Food Security led by Datuk Seri Mohamad Sabu are responsible at the technical level to evaluate and provide input related to agriculture issues before they are tabled in the Cabinet.

"We will look at the entire value chain, which means we have to look at the quality of seeds and agricultural inputs, fertilisers, breeds, animal feed and so on.

“From there, we will also coordinate with all ministries including my ministry because it also involves the plantation sector," he told reporters after attending the ‘Bubur Lambuk dan Sumbangsih Ramadan Media Sarawak Liansin’ programme here today.

Earlier, Fadillah distributed 2,000 packs of bubur lambuk to the public in conjunction with the programme organised by the Federation of Sarawak Journalists Association (FSJA) and Liansin Trading Sdn Bhd.

Meanwhile, on his recent meeting with Opposition chief whip Datuk Seri Takiyuddin Hassan, Fadillah said it was an initial meeting to give space to the opposition bloc to make an offer to establish cooperation with the government.

"They (the opposition) need to make an offer to us in black and white and from there, when we have accepted the offer, the government will set up a team to negotiate with them.

"We will see what scope of cooperation would be most suitable between the two parties as happened in the previous government, where there was an MoU signed," he said.

 No deadline has been set for the opposition to submit the cooperation offer and the government is open to any negotiation if the two blocs do not reach a consensus, he added.

-- BERNAMA