133 Penan families in Lusong Laku to benefit from iM Sarawak wet paddy cultivation

KUCHING,  June 20, 2015  – Some 133 Penan families in Lusong Laku, Belaga will benefit from an iM Sarawak wet paddy cultivation project that will be due for harvesting at the end of the year.

The project, which is a collaborative partnership between iM Sarawak, the Ministry of Modernisation of Agriculture,  State Department of Agriculture and Ceria Group, aims to assist in the food sufficiency problem faced by the Penan community here.

The MR263 seedlings used are expected to gain much higher yield as compared to the hill paddy that the community used to plant. In addition, they will now also be able to harvest twice a year as compared to the once a year harvest of the hill paddy.

(From L-R)  Anthony Nogeh, Datuk Joseph Salang, Chairman, Datuk Liwan Lagang, Datuk Billy Abit Joo and  Irwan Zulkarnain Haji Mohd Hasbie.


Saging Bit, 58, penghulu of Sungai Asap and Lusong Laku, when met, said, “This is the first agricultural project brought by iM Sarawak to Lusong Laku. Not many organisations have done this kind of project in our area due to the remoteness of our settlement. We are very glad to have this project to support the Penan community.”

He opined that the land clearing to plant the paddy was just the beginning.

He admitted however, a big challenge would be changing the mindset of the Penans who are traditionally hunter-gatherers.

“The effort must come from all parties including the Penans themselves to make it a success. They must buy into the idea that this project is for them, to help them. I will be working hard to ensure that the people benefit from this.”

Saging added he will work closely with iM Sarawak and the appointed contractor Ceria Group to monitor the project.

Uma Penan Lusong Laku headman, Tinggang Jati, 35, said the core food produced from the wet paddy would be a suitable replacement for the traditional sago-based staple, the linut.

 Saging Bit,

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“All the families here in Uma Penan welcome the project by iM Sarawak and the state government’s aid. We are shifting our daily work routines to focus on planting paddy…something which is very uncommon for us” he said.

"We have our small farms but the majority have been destroyed by wild animals and some of us now depend entirely on food that is foraged from the jungle, but there just isn’t enough," he echoed.

The Chairman of 1Malaysia Sarawak Advisory Council (1MSAC), Datuk Joseph Salang Gandum, said “The primary objective of this project is to bring an improvement to the quality of life of the people in this remote area.”

He added that another important role for the project was to identify and train local farmers to practise semi-mechanised farming.

The land preparation be will divided into two stages.

The first stage will be take approximately two months and will involve land preparation and levelling, and construction of the bunds and irrigation system. The second phase will deal with maintenance and operation. Drying and milling facilities will also be built as part of the project.

“Meanwhile, as the community works towards the first harvest, the project will also set up a vegetable plot for the villagers and build them a livestock farm for the long-term as well,” Datuk Joseph added.

Tinggang Jati

To further ease the burden of the community while they wait for the first harvest, iM Sarawak also launched a food aid programme.

The locals receive food aid worth RM100 per month per family to purchase essential items such as rice, sugar, cooking oil and milk.

Among those present during the ground breaking ceremony were Belaga state legislative member and Assistant Minister of Culture and Heritage Datuk Liwan Lagang, 1Malaysia Sarawak Advisory Council members Anthony Nogeh, Datuk Billy Abit Joo, and Irwan Zulkarnain  Mohd Hasbie.

Lusong Laku can be reached from Bintulu town through an eight hour journey on a rugged timber track.

iM Sarawak is a social development initiative led by the 1Malaysia Sarawak Advisory Council (1MSAC) to help improve the quality of life of various communities throughout the state, in line with the principles of 1Malaysia. It is designed to bring long-term sustainable benefits to the people focusing primarily on the areas of Improving Quality of Life, Education and Sports.

The 1MSAC was formed by the Prime Minister YAB Datuk Seri Najib  Razak, to advise him on the needs of the communities in Sarawak.

Other members of  1MSAC, chaired by Salang, are Limbang MP YB Hasbi Habibollah;  Nogeh Gumbek,  former Hulu Rajang MP Datuk Billy Abit Joo and Irwan Zulkarnain uhammad Hasbie.

The 1MSAC gathers inputs from the people and various government agencies to identify and propose projects under the iM Sarawak banner.