KUALA LUMPUR, March 14 — The Plantation and Commodities Ministry (KPK), via the Malaysian Timber Industry Board (MTIB), had approved RM1.02 billion in funding for the Forest Plantation Development Programme (PPLH) until December 31, 2023.
Deputy Plantation and Commodities Minister Datuk Chan Foong Hin said MTIB’s wholly-owned unit Forest Plantation Development Sdn Bhd is responsible for implementing PPLH by providing soft loan financing to eligible private companies, cooperatives, and government agencies.
108 PPLH loan agreements, comprising 91 companies and government agencies, have been approved to develop 144,077 hectares of forest plantations.
“Until now, RM834.58 million in loans have been disbursed based on the planting areas carried out.
“Loans to companies are channelled in stages based on claims from the borrowing company,” he said during a question-and-answer session in the Dewan Rakyat today.
Chan was responding to Tangga Batu MP Bakri Jamaluddin’s query on the amount of funding issued, the number of companies or entrepreneurs involved, the types of crops cultivated, and the areas under the PPLH.
As of December 31 last year, RM41.2 million had been successfully collected from 23 PPLH borrowers.
Meanwhile, the deputy minister said that KPK via PPLH also provides soft loans of RM10,000 per hectare to companies for bamboo planting.
However, the ministry has not received any loan applications for bamboo planting under PPLH yet.
— Bernama
