BELUM DISUNTING 22 NOVEMBER 2016 (Mesyuarat dimulakan pada jam 9.19 pagi) [Tuan Speaker mempengerusikan Mesyuarat] DOA PEMASYHURAN DARIPADA TUAN SPEAKER Tuan Speaker: Bismillahirahmanirahim. Assalamualaikum warahmatullahi wabarakatuh. Selamat pagi dan salam sejahtera. Ahli-Ahli Yang Berhormat, I have granted leave of absence under Standing Order 81 to Yang Berhormat Tan Sri William Mawan Anak Ikom, Honourable Member for N.47 Pakan, for the whole of this session. PERTANYAAN-PERTANYAAN BAGI JAWAPAN-JAWAPAN LISAN PRODUK BERASASKAN BIOTEKNOLOGI DI SARAWAK (1) Y.B. Ir Aidel Bin Lariwoo bertanya kepada Ketua Menteri: Apakah usaha Kerajaan untuk memperkasakan produk yang berasaskan bioteknologi di Sarawak? Menteri Muda Penyelidikan Sains dan Bioteknologi (Y.B. Dr Haji Annuar bin Rapaee): Terima kasih, Ahli Yang Berhormat bagi Sadong Jaya. Tuan Speaker, the State Government has put in place several initiatives to drive research in various sectors such as agriculture, natural products and crops that will enhance development of biotech based products. Amongst these are:- (a) The establishment of State research institutions such as Agriculture Research Centre, Sarawak Biodiversity Centre, CRAUN Research and Federal research agency like MARDI. (b) The incorporation of new growth areas in Corridor of Renewable Energy in particular the Mukah Science Park, which will play a very important role in providing the infrastructure to establish biotech related research to develop products from industries such as palm oil, timber based products, sago products, food and non-food processing for the halal market, the health care and herbal natural products. (c) The establishing of research oriented institutions of higher learning such as UNIMAS in Samarahan, UPM in Bintulu, UiTM, Curtin and Swinburne universities. I would like to highlight to this august House that the Curtin University is setting up a bio valley park in Miri, developed in partnership with the Ministry of Industrial and Entrepreneurs Development, Trade and Investment, Sarawak. The bio valley costing RM50 million will include infrastructure and facilities to facilitate generation of higher value added products through pilot scale production, products analysis, quality assurance and routine testing among others. Y.B. Ir Aidel Bin Lariwoo: (Supplementary Question) Thank you, Tuan Speaker, thank you, the Honourable Assistant Minister. I have two supplementary questions: (a) What are the biotech based research conducted by the research institution in Sarawak? (b) What is the amount of funding from either Federal and State Governments allocated for research activities in Sarawak under the Eleventh Malaysia Plan? 1 BELUM DISUNTING 22 NOVEMBER 2016 Menteri Muda Penyelidikan Sains dan Bioteknologi (Y.B. Dr Haji Annuar Bin Rapaee): Thank you, Ahli Yang Berhormat for Sadong Jaya. Tuan Speaker, there are a number of research institutions in Sarawak that carry out biotech based research. These include the State and Federal research agencies such as universities. I will share first two examples here: (a) The Agriculture Research Centre Sarawak. Among the biotech based research that are carried out is the development of tissue culture protocols for elite planting materials, the screening for beneficial microbes and biological control agents such actinomycetes and plant disease, bio control fungi, molecular finger printing for paddy and pineapples, molecular and cytological diagnosis for plant diseases. (b) CRAUN Research which priority project is sago and it carries out research in high quality planting materials via tissue culture, development of new home made sago, milling and refining including developing ways to increase the yield of sago, development and establishment of sago waste treatment, development of products from sago bio mass as composting agent in bio chemical. Whereas our Biodiversity Centre (SBC) carries out bio prospecting on various biological resources that are found in the State. And MARDI also carries out a few research including inventory indigenous pepper plants, development of products such as ikan lumek, kelulut as well as terung asam and dabai. And therefore, there are various institutions which carried out researches to enhance the biotech products. Thank you. Soalan nombor dua, sorry. The question number two, the funding. The State Government has allocated a total of RM44.3 million from the State’s funds for the following research institutions under the Eleventh Malaysia Plan:- (a) The Tropical Peat Research Institute - about RM5 million (b) The CRAUN Research – RM11.8 million (c) The SBC - RM27.5 million The CRAUN Research has also been allocated RM10 million from the Federal’s fund under the Eleventh Malaysia Plan. And I would like to inform the august House here as well that the Medical Health and Research Sector, that is the Clinical Research Centre at the Sarawak General Hospital, has secured a Federal funding of RM 50 million for a dedicated clinical research facility and is amongst one of the first in the country to have a clinical research facility. Thank you very much. 2 BELUM DISUNTING 22 NOVEMBER 2016 MARKET/PASAR HASIL TANI DI KAPIT (2) Y.B. Encik Jefferson Jamit Anak Unyat bertanya kepada Menteri Kerajaan Tempatan: Apakah status cadangan untuk membina Market/Pasar Hasil Tani di Kapit yang telah terlalu sesak dan tidak mampu menampung bilangan peniaga yang kian bertambah? Menteri Muda Kerajaan Tempatan (Y.B. Datu Dr Penguang Manggil): Terima kasih, Tuan Speaker. Terima kasih Ahli Yang Berhormat bagi Bukit Goram. For the information of Ahli Yang Berhormat for Bukit Goram, the council is exploring the possibility to acquire the land with the vacant building previously occupied by the Agriculture Department at the Kapit New Bazaar for the purpose of constructing a jungle produce market. Apart from this, the proposed development for the Kapit Waterfront Project under the Rancangan Malaysia Ke- 11 will also incorporate trading spaces for hawkers and traders particularly during the weekends. Thank you. Y.B. Encik Jefferson Jamit Anak Unyat: (Soalan Tambahan) Terima kasih, Tuan Speaker. Terima kasih Menteri Muda Kerajaan Tempatan. I have two supplementary questions: (a) What is the approved ceiling for the Kapit Waterfront? (b) How many trading lots are proposed in the project? Menteri Muda Kerajaan Tempatan (Y.B. Datu Dr Penguang Manggil): Thank you very much to Ahli Yang Berhormat for Bukit Goram. The approved ceiling under Rancangan Malaysia Ke-11 is about RM5 million and in the Waterfront Project; the proposed number of trading lots included in the project is about 100 lots to accommodate the hawkers and traders during the weekend. Thank you. SARIKEI AS "FRUIT BASKET OF SARAWAK" (3) Y.B. Dato’ Sri Huang Tiong Sii bertanya kepada Menteri Pemodenan Pertanian dan Ekonomi Luar Bandar: (a) List out the assistance in the form of technical advice, subsidies and schemes toward realizing the Government aspiration to turn Sarikei as “Fruit Basket of Sarawak”. (b) Is there any plan to give fund to repair agriculture roads or supplying water and electricity to the farmers in Repok area? Menteri Muda Ekonomi Luar Bandar (Kawasan Pesisir dan Perikanan) dan Menteri Muda Pembangunan Perindustrian (Pelaburan dan Promosi) (Y.B. Datuk Haji Julaihi Bin Haji Narawi): Tuan Speaker, for the information of Ahli Yang Berhormat for Repok, the State Government through the Department of Agriculture Sarawak is implementing various agro food programs in Sarikei Division in order to increase food productions including fruit productions. Among the programs are: (a) Fruit industry development program; (b) Agriculture diversification program; (c) Agro-based industry and home economic program; (d) Livestock development program; 3 BELUM DISUNTING 22 NOVEMBER 2016 (e) Eco-culture development program In regards to your question part B, pertaining to fund for repair of roads or supplying of water and electricity to the farmers in Repok area, the Government process and give due consideration to any request that have been received. As such, I would like to advise the Honourable Member for Repok to submit any outstanding requests to the relevant ministries. Thank you. Y.B Dato’ Sri Huang Tiong Sii: (Supplementary Question) The first question is, what is the value or assistance a number of farmers getting the assistance? The second question, is there any study done on fruit baskets of Sarawak to date? Thank you. Menteri Muda Ekonomi Luar Bandar (Kawasan Pesisir) dan Persisiran dan Menteri Muda Pembangunan Perindustrian (Pelaburan dan Promosi)(Y.B Datuk Haji Julaihi Bin Haji Narawi): Thank you the Honourable Member for Repok. To answer your first question, there are 459 farmers benefitting from the various programmes implemented by the Department of Agriculture with the value close to RM2.5 million. To answer your second supplementary question, I would like to inform that the Government has carried out a study to produce an integrated masterplan for the development of fruit baskets for the Sarikei, Bintangor, Betong regions up to the year of 2030. Currently, the study is still in the final stage. The masterplan once finalized will serve as a guideline for the development of fruit baskets particularly fruits and vegetables for Sarikei, Bintangor and Betong regions that will bring more benefit to the local communities and the overall the development of the fruits and vegetable industry. Generally, the study assist the market potential fruit crops that can be cultivated in the study areas, identify