Five major national corridors to translate country's development agenda: Zahid

BAGAN DATUK: Caretaker Deputy Prime Minister Datuk Seri Dr Ahmad Zahid Hamidi wants more organised and effective coordination in the five major national corridors to enable them to translate the development agenda of the country.
He said former prime minister Tun Abdullah Ahmad Badawi had launched the five development corridors namely Iskandar Malaysia, Northern Corridor Economic Region (NCER), East Coast Economic Region (ECER), Sabah Development Corridor (SDC) and Sarawak Corridor of Renewable Energy (SCORE) to bridge the income gap between the people.
"All the corridors are agencies that coordinate development in every region since it was introduced by Pak Lah (Abdullah). So, we want a more organised coordination.
"We hope that all these regional corridors can translate the agenda to develop areas that have been left behind in the national development," he said at the launch of the Northern Corridor Implementation Authority Agropreneur Community Programme in Bagan Datuk here.
Under the leadership of Abdullah, the Iskandar Development Region was launched in 2008, NCER and ECER (2007), SDC and SCORE (2008). These initiatives involve the provision of infrastructure and utilisation of resources in rural areas to enhance the socio-economic status of the people.
Zahid wants the Northern Corridor Implementation Authority (NCIA) to spearhead NCER to continue driving development in the northern regions, especially in Bagan Datuk.
He said before this, the Bagan Datuk district was a remote area and somewhat marginalised as it was not part of the implementation of NCER in Perak.
"Once Bagan Datuk is included in the NCER, various programmes and initiatives have been implemented in this area which have benefited the people here," he said.
On the Agropreneur Community programme here, which was implemented through the National Blue Ocean Strategy approach, Zahid said the programme has produced 200 agropreneurs involved in cultivating chilies using the fertigation method with an average income of over RM1,000 per month.
"Now, some of Agropreneur Community programme participants are earning more than RM15,000 (per month). This programme proves that the people in remote areas like Bagan Datuk are also able to achieve success if they are given the opportunity," he said.
He also suggested the Federal Agricultural Marketing Authority (Fama) establish a contract farming system to assist the Agropreneur Community programme participants in downstream activities such as producing chilli sauce and powder.
Zahid wants the 380 applicants in the waiting list of the Agropreneur Community programme to be absorbed as participants to bring the total number of programme participants to 580.
"As NCIA deputy chairman, I will monitor this programme (Agropreneur Community) to ensure that all can benefit from it by earning lucrative incomes," he added.
He also asked the NCIA to implement programmes for those in the bottom 40% income group regardless of their race.
"Do not marginalise any races. We must provide opportunities to everyone," he said.
During Budget 2018, caretaker Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Abdul Razak announced that the government had allocated RM1 billion to raise the country's five major corridors in a bid to propel the private sector as the growth engine. — Bernama