KUCHING: The number of researchers in the agricultural sector must be increased to ensure comprehensive development of the industry.
Minister for Food Industry, Commodities and Regional Development (M-FICORD), Datuk Seri Dr Stephen Rundi Utom, said that building a strong agricultural workforce must begin with producing as many researchers as possible.
“This is the first key; we need to establish the upstream level. The production part will come next, which many people can get involved in,” he said.
He said this during a press conference after officiating the 20th Convocation Ceremony of the Sarawak Agricultural Institute (IPS) under the Department of Agriculture Sarawak at UCSI Hotel today.
In line with that, Dr Rundi urged the Department of Agriculture Sarawak (DoA) to increase the number of researchers in the agricultural field.
“The Department of Agriculture Sarawak currently has 37 researchers, and we hope they can give greater focus to this matter.
“I believe efforts are already underway, and it is my great hope that all these matters will be fully addressed before I leave this ministry,” he said.
On a related note, Dr Rundi also touched on the shortage of researchers in the aquaculture sector.
“Recently, I visited the Fisheries Research and Education Agency (FRA) in Japan, which has 500 researchers,” he added.
“Therefore, we want to see an increase in the number of researchers in Sarawak’s aquaculture sector, as there are currently only four.”
ENDS
