On 19th October 2018, as part of ministry effort to spur the growth of the pepper industry, Ministry of Primary industry (MPI) organized a special discussion with several industry players of the Malaysian Pepper Association (MPA) in Putrajaya, Malaysia.
The Discussion was chaired by YB Puan Theresa Kwok, Ministry of Primary Industry, Malaysia accompanied by Secretary General of MPI and their staffs. The dialogue session was attended by Mdm. Hoang Thi Lien, Executive Director of International Pepper Community, Mr. Sam Lim, Mr. Derrick Mr. Ricky Lee and Mr. Hazry of Malaysia Pepper Industry Association (MyLada).
During the discussion, MPA pointed out several strategies should be implemented by Malaysian government to boost up the development of pepper industry in Malaysia, among those strategies include, improving productivity and income of smallholder's farmers by producing quality pepper through controlling total plantations area, improving market access to pepper farmer on their produce, intensifying quality and export enforcement and etc.
In addition, IPC also highlighted that there is a need for Malaysia government to encourage greater cooperation and consolidation among the associations/traders to enable them to share information and networking, and address issues faced by the industry collectively. Besides, collaborative initiatives will be undertaken to build smart partnerships to create value and sustain competitiveness among member countries such as ASTA, ESA etc.
On the other hand, YB Puan Theresa Kwok praises Malaysia Pepper Association for their dedication and commitment in bringing Malaysia pepper to greater height especially during price instability and oversupply condition. In additional, Ministry take note all the problems and issues related to Malaysian pepper industry and will take suitable remedy action in protecting the interest of all pepper industry players to ensure the industry will remain sustainable in the future.
In conclusion, YB Puan Theresa Kwok reiterated that as an agency which solely responsible for the development of pepper industry in Malaysia, Malaysia government through MPB will continue to ensure that all industry players will be treated fairly to accelerate the growth and promote the pepper sector to be a modern and dynamic sector. It is hoped that the strategies will ensure the pepper industry will be one of the driving forces and engine of growth for economic development in Malaysia.
