Jamit (front third right) gestures during the presentation of Musang King saplings. — Photo by James Ling
KAPIT (Aug 16): A total of 155 landowners from 18 longhouses in Bukit Goram received Musang King durian saplings today under the ‘Agriculture Facilitation Project’.
Bukit Goram assemblyman Jefferson Jamit Unyat said the programme comes under the Ministry of Modernisation of Agriculture, Native Land and Regional Development.
“This is Phase I with a total of 3,564 saplings or an average of 22 saplings per landowner. Phase II and Phase III will be delivered later when the saplings arrive from Kuching.
“This is under the ‘Agriculture Facilitation Project’ to help farmers to open up land for commercial crops. The ultimate goal is to generate an income in future because Musang King durians are highly sought after by the people in Malaysia and overseas, especially China,” he said at the event.
He pointed out that Musang King saplings are very delicate and fragile, requiring great care, especially in the first few years.
“If you don’t have knowledge and skills to manage, the sapling may not be successful because of too much sun or rain, which would destroy the plant.
“Please seek advice from the Agriculture Department on how to look after the sapling until it is two or three years old. Treat the sapling very carefully so that it grows,” he said.
Jamit pointed out that over the last three to four years, the government has focussed on infrastructure development such as road construction to link rural longhouses in Kapit, so landowners should grab the opportunity to plant commercial crops.