By Siti Rohaizah Zainal
SHAH ALAM, Nov 23 — The state government has allocated over RM25 million to implement the Jualan Ehsan Rahmah (JER) affordable basic necessities sales programme this year and in 2022.
State executive councillor for agriculture Izham Hashim said Selangor is always concerned about food security issues, by formulating short and long-term plans for the people.
“For the short term, we took several steps, including implementing the sale of daily necessities at discounted prices and collaborating with the Federal government.
“Although the JER programme is seen as an initial and immediate step, it has proven helpful to the people. We have spent over RM25 million this year and last year supporting the efforts of the Selangor State Agricultural Development Corporation and Kohijrah.
“This initiative has greatly helped stabilise some commodities or basic necessities for the people, including eggs, chicken, and rice,” he said.
Izham was responding to a query by Meru state assemblyman Mariam Abdul Rashid during the Selangor State Legislative Assembly session yesterday.
He added that for long-term planning, the state government will focus on crucial components in agriculture and food, particularly related to the preparation of animal breeds.
“Many seeds and breeds are imported from abroad, such as shrimp from Madagascar, but due to the pandemic, we cannot import them, and we buy them in Thailand, but the quality is low.
“Moreover, the best goat breeds, namely the Black Belly Barbados (BBB), are not actively bred, and spinach plants are also imported from Taiwan.
“Therefore, Selangor will focus on crucial components in agriculture related to breeds, as we launched corn, melon, and papaya seeds last year,” he said.
