KUALA LUMPUR – The Plantation Industries and Commodities Ministry is committed to sustaining the country’s agricommodity sector in order to ensure continued post-Covid-19 economic recovery despite facing the rising challenge of inflation going forward.
Its minister Datuk Zuraida Kamaruddin said the National Agricommodity Policy 2021-2030, which was launched in March this year, guides the ministry in maximising the potential of the circular economy through agricommodity biomass.
“This is to strengthen the position of the agricommodity sectors in post-Covid-19 economic recovery,” she said in a statement today.
Contrary to the impression, Zuraida said the two-year Covid-19/movement control order period of 2020-2021 were “booming years” for Malaysia’s agricommodity products, showing an overall increase of 64% from the pre-pandemic period of 2018-2019.
Despite the country facing economic devastation from the raging Covid-19 pandemic, she said Malaysia’s agricommodity products’ export has remained strong, rising significantly over the four-year period from RM127.9 billion in 2018 to RM128.5 billion (2019). RM151.3 billion (2020) and RM209.6 billion (2021).
According to the minister, the six agricommodity products that will benefit directly from the National Agricommodity Policy are palm oil, rubber, timber, cocoa, pepper, and kenaf. – Bernama, September 26, 2022
