By Jaythaleela K
Baram, Nov 26: The rural communities are being told to adopt modern farming methods to increase their profitability apart from engaging more young people in the sector.
“No doubt, due to education attainments and the need to seek blue collar jobs among the rural folks have created huge rural migrations to the urban areas and leaving only the old folks residing in longhouses today, not sparing the community of Telang Usan,” disclosed Telang Usan assemblyman Dennis Ngau.
Therefore, he said the rural  communities must accept this reality and adapt to latest ways of doing farming in order to be able to achieve successful undertakings as farmers as envisioned by the state leaders.
Dennis said the state government is embarking on modern farming and used modern technology for better productions and attracting more younger Sarawak generation, especially to utilise their inherited land and home to earn a living to raise their family
“Like what have been suggested  by our state leaders, we must make a big turn in our way  to get profit through land development, that is why the state government  encourages Native Customary Rights ( NCR ) land owners especially in the very rural settlements to look at the possibility of inviting companies that have the means to invest in large scale farming such coffee, rubber, durian or others to develop  your land,” he pointed out.
Dennis added, for big scale farming, it will need a factory to process the crop produced just like what happens with the oil palm plantations and rubber estates with oil mills and factory nearby.
But to convince potential investors to come in, he said NCR land owners must do their part by having their land documented by the state authorities.
“I am very aware that there is a certain group of people among us with reasons, only known to them, who have blocked every attempt by rural folks to get Land and Survey Department survey their land on perimeter survey section 6 initiatives.
“This in fact have benefitted thousands and thousands of NCR land owners throughout the state today,” he disclosed, adding that he was saddened by such action.
Dennis said this during a two-day programme on giving knowledge of rubber, coffee and vegetable  growing in Long Anap recently.
More than 150 participants from Long Anap, Long Palai, Long Julan and Long Apu attended the event.
Also present were Miri Agriculture Department officer Hafriz Razak, Cr Peter Bit, Assistant Controller of Sarawak Rivers Board Leonard Luhat, Long Anap headman Anthony Belare and other longhouse headmen. — DayakDaily
