KUCHING: The Sarawak government will be rolling out its master plan on smart agriculture in its bid to become a top food exporter by 2030.
Agriculture, Native Land and Regional Development Assistant Minister Dr Abdul Rahman Ismail said smart agriculture would boost productivity in the state’s agriculture sector.
He said the usage of Internet of Things (IoT), sensor and big data analysis in the sector would allow Sarawak to push forward its digital economy.
“With technology using the Internet of Things (IoT) and sensor, this can help farmers operate and maintain their irrigation equipment remotely, as well as help them monitor the moisture, growth and soil pressure levels.
“There is no doubt that automated technology will not only become the catalyst in a product’s quality and quantity, but also significantly will reduce the cost in production,” he said at the ‘Revolutionising the Agriculture Sector through Industry 4.0’ seminar at MPC Sarawak here yesterday.
Stressing that smart farming was at the forefront along with three other sectors under the 12th Malaysia Plan, Abdul Rahman said the ministry had expanded its strategic partnership with private companies for a holistic outcome.
“To date, we have already signed 15 memoranda of understanding to ensure the sustainability of smart agriculture,” he said.
As such, he noted the collaborative approach in digital economy was necessary to enable the production of food for export.
“We must ask the farmers and stakeholders to work together with us to be able to meet demands globally and self-sufficiency in terms of food security.
“Malaysia now ranks 40th while Singapore ranks as the top exporter this year,” he said.
Highlighting the importance of strong support from key industry players and the usage of latest technology, Abdul Rahman believed that smart agriculture would become the main vehicle to boost the country’s GDP.
“We believe that our mission to achieve digitalised state in 2030 through this initiative can help to improve the state’s GDP to 6.5 per cent every year,” he explained.
Calling upon all experts, youths and farmers to work together, he hoped that MPC would continue to hold seminars for farmers.
