KUCHING: Sarawak is grappling with a critical shortage of workers in its oil palm plantations, with the state requiring over 800,000 workers, according to the state’s Food Industry, Commodity, and Regional Development Minister, Datuk Seri Dr. Stephen Rundi Utom.
The minister emphasized that the figure only pertains to plantations managed by the Sarawak Land Consolidation and Rehabilitation Authority (Salcra), excluding other agricultural sectors. Sarawak, with 1.62 million hectares of oil palm plantations, is facing a major challenge, especially in terms of harvesters. According to Dr. Rundi, each worker should be able to harvest 1.5 tonnes of crops per day, and the shortage of workers is resulting in lost profits and opportunities.
Dr. Rundi, who recently returned from a five-day working visit to Indonesia, revealed that to resolve this issue, Salcra has been actively seeking potential workers in areas such as Jakarta and Lombok. However, he pointed out that recruiting foreign workers is a highly regulated process, requiring coordination with Malaysia’s Labour and Immigration departments. While workers in Peninsular Malaysia usually arrive within 45 days, Sarawak faces delays of up to 90 days or more.
To address this issue, the state government is working on simplifying the recruitment process for oil palm plantation workers from Indonesia to ensure that Salcra’s operations run smoothly and efficiently. The minister’s statement highlights the urgency of addressing this labour shortage to prevent further economic loss in the sector.
