‘Automate, don't rely on foreign workers,’ govt tells plantations

 

The government is urging the plantation sector to embrace automation to overcome issues of labour shortages.

This comes after the Malaysian Estate Owners Association said it is losing five to 10 percent of its earnings due to a shortage of some 120,000 workers.

Plantation Industries and Commodities Minister Zuraida Kamaruddin said the manpower shortage was due to unavoidable external factors like border closure to curb Covid-19 transmission.

Plantation Industries and Commodities Minister Zuraida Kamaruddin

While the government is working to resolve this in the short term, in the future, plantations should cut dependency on foreign workers by using technology like drones, she said.

Research shows drones could be used for activities like pest control and surveillance, she said.

She is also confident the labour crunch would spur plantation owners to look into greater automation.

"The use of greater automation will help reduce our dependency on foreign workers and make the industry more resilient in the long run.

"In this respect, the ministry feels that the current labour crunch in the palm oil sector will spur planters to start investing in technological tools and boost their own bottom lines in the long run," she said in a statement.

Reuters reported earlier this month that Malaysian firms, including palm oil plantations, are forgoing billions of ringgit in sales due to a worker shortage.

Palm oil growers say they are at a breaking point and are "having to play a game of football against 11 men but only being allowed to field seven".

Although Zuraida blamed Covid-19 restrictions, diplomats from labour sourcing countries Bangladesh and Indonesia said workers' rights are part of the hold-up.

Bangladesh signed an agreement in December to send workers but implementation was delayed after Dhaka protested Malaysia's proposed hiring process, citing fears the plan could lead to increased costs for the workers and debt bondage. - Mkini