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The visitors gather for a group photo, taken during the working visit to the rice cultivation project site.
KUCHING (Jan 10): Engagement sessions for the Rice Production Operations Supervision Programme have been carried to help strengthen local talent development in the agricultural sector, particularly the rice industry in Sarawak.
They were jointly undertaken by the state Ministry of Food Industry, Commodities and Regional Development (M-FICORD), state Ministry of Education, Innovation and Talent Development (MEITD), Sarawak Skills and the Muda Agricultural Development Authority (Mada).
“This programme is designed to encourage youth participation in modern agricultural skills and to enhance the capacity of a skilled workforce across the rice production value chain,” said Sarawak Skills in a statement.
Through this initiative, 25 local youths have been selected to undergo a fully sponsored training programme at the Mada Rice Training Centre (MRTC), starting this month.
The participants will receive intensive training covering rice cultivation technology, farm operations management, agricultural mechanisation and industry best practices, with the aim of producing a competent and competitive workforce.
According to MRTC manager Mohd Huzaifi Kamaruddin, the programme sets out to develop a new generation of professionals in rice production supervision and operations, as well as knowledgeable rice entrepreneurs capable of adapting modern agricultural technologies.
“Human capital development is a critical element in ensuring the sustainability of the national rice industry,” he said in a statement.
Meanwhile, Sarawak Skills said the engagement sessions also included briefing talks, question-and-answer sessions and open interviews.
“The programme received an overwhelmingly positive response from the local community, particularly the youths in Padawan and Sri Aman,” it added.
The first session took place at the Puncak Borneo Community Service Centre last Dec 1, while the second was held at the Lingga Multipurpose Hall on Dec 3.
Syed Ismail Wan Drahman, M-FICORD Smallholder and Commercial Rice Growers Unit head, hoped that more youths would come forward to venture into rice cultivation.
“Youth participation is crucial in producing future skilled personnel and project managers who can drive the development of Sarawak’s rice sector in the future.”
As part of efforts to strengthen strategic cooperation, M-FICORD and Mada also conducted official visits to Sarawak Skills headquarters and also Sarawak Skills Sri Aman.
“The visits aimed to review training facilities, discuss potential long-term collaboration and ensure better alignment for more effective implementation of training programmes,” said Sarawak Skills.
Registration for the programme opens until Jan 10.
Local youths interested in joining can contact the Sustainable Engagement Unit in Kuching via 011-2992 9916 (Linda), 019-898 7039 (Dympna), 014-873 0636 (Ian), and in Sri Aman via 014-884 3143 (Dexter), or 016-808 2340 (Missey).
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