By Wilfred Pilo
KUCHING, Feb 17: There is a good chance the European Union (EU) will soon recognise the Malaysian Sustainable Palm Oil (MSPO) certification, says Deputy Prime Minister Dato Sri Fadillah Yusof.
He said an EU representative informed him that there was a good chance that MSPO would be recognised in the European Union Deforestation Regulation (EUDR) auditing process, which meant that small plantation owners would be safeguarded.
“We hope and wait for the good news on the subject matters from the EU as they will make the announcement soon—hopefully early this year.
“At the moment, EUDR has its auditing process and procedures in sustainable development that could be carried out in the industry here,” he said to reporters after presenting parliamentary grants to the village development and security committees (JKKKs) for his constituency of Petra Jaya at the Kampung Malaysia Community Hall today.
The Petra Jaya MP pointed out to the EU before that if the policymakers recognised MSPO, there was no need for an auditing process.
“That is what we wanted in the beginning. So, if the EU recognises the MSPO certification scheme in the first place, then there is no need to audit every product of every company that produces oil palm goods.
“So far, based on feedback on the audit they did in Sarawak and Malaysia, we are on the right track, he said.
Earlier today, Fadillah, who also is also the Minister of Energy Transition and Water Transformation Malaysia, said he had a meeting with EU delegates, and he was briefed on their brainstorming session after their business forum in Sarawak.
He revealed that EU delegates also see the potential for investment in Sarawak and see the Post-Covid Development Strategy (PCDS) 2030 as an opportunity for them to contribute through investment.
“EU business delegates are interested, and that is what they told me,” he said.
Meanwhile, grants worth RM255,000 were disbursed to 85 JKKKs during the event.
Each JKKK received RM3,000 to carry out their activities. — DayakDaily
