KUALA LUMPUR, July 27 — The level of food security in Malaysia is stable and the domestic food supply is sufficient to cover the needs, said Agriculture and Food Security Minister Datuk Seri Mohamad Sabu.
He said that based on the Global Food Security Index (GFSI) 2022, Malaysia was ranked 41 out of 113 countries with a score of 69.9 and ranked second after Singapore among Southeast Asian countries.
“However, the national food security agenda requires the involvement of all parties in making plans and directions for the development of the country’s agrofood industry.
“Commitment from all parties is crucial to increase food security, apart from efforts to reduce dependence on imports,” he said in the keynote address of the Ministerial Forum on National Food Security 2023 here, today.
He also outlined the five main areas of focus of the Ministry of Agriculture and Food Security (MAFS) this year to ensure the food security agenda is a success, in line with the National Food Security Policy Action Plan and the National Agrofood Policy 2.0.
He said it involves empowering the aquaculture industry with the aim of reducing pressure on the demand for natural water resources while also increasing income through the aquaculture industry.
“Second focus is to expand cattle breeding in feedlots to meet the needs of local meat supply as well as exports and the third focus is the cultivation of grain corn to increase its production by 30 per cent by 2032 to reduce import dependency.
“Apart from that, we will increase the involvement of youths to engage in the agrofood sector and smart agriculture because the main challenge for the sector is the issue of foreign workers and ageing farmers.
“MAFS will also empower agricultural training institutions in producing high-quality graduates in the field of agricultural technology, research and development (R&D) as well as modern and smart agriculture in line with the country’s desire to create skilled agricultural workers,” he said.
