KUALA LUMPUR, July 4 — Malaysia’s new padi varieties, designed to be more resilient to unpredictable weather changes such as drought and floods, are expected to be cultivated in 2025 and 2026 as part of a food security measure, the Dewan Rakyat was told today.
Deputy Agriculture and Food Security Minister Datuk Arthur Joseph Kurup said the ministry (MAFS), via the Malaysian Agricultural Research and Development Institute (Mardi), is researching these varieties.
“Mardi has already started researching the new padi varieties. Field studies have been conducted, and we anticipate that these new varieties will be in use by 2025 and 2026,” he said during the oral question and answer session.
He was responding to a supplementary question from Datuk Seri Hasni Mohammad (BN-Simpang Renggam) about moves for the agricultural sector to manage climate change risks.
In response to Hasni’s original question about MAFS’ preparations to tackle weather uncertainty in agriculture, Arthur said the ministry has requested the National Disaster Management Agency implement the second phase of cloud seeding in agricultural areas affected by hot and dry weather.
He said the effort was part of MAFS’ immediate measures to address the effects of climate change, in line with the National Agrofood Policy 2.0.
“For example, to tackle the issue of drought in the Kemubu Agricultural Development Authority area in Kelantan, the first phase of cloud seeding was conducted from June 21 to 23 last year. Following this operation, moderate to heavy rain was recorded on June 21 in the target areas of Gua Musang and Pasir Puteh,” he said.
He said MAFS has started a rainwater harvesting system and launched searches for underground water sources through a tube well system to address the lack of water during the dry season. The ministry also uses mulching to maintain plant moisture.
Arthur noted that 251 tube wells and 246 mobile pumps have been prepared by MAFS to meet the needs of farmers and livestock breeders in areas affected by disasters such as floods and drought.
“We carry out maintenance of the agricultural irrigation and drainage system every year to ensure proper infrastructure functions, with RM80 million allocated this year for that purpose.
“This year, MAFS has allocated RM50 million via the Agricultural Disaster Fund and RM12 million via the Padi Crop Disaster Fund to assist agrofood producers affected by floods,” he said.
— Bernama
