| Mukah swiftlets farmer welcome eco-park |
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The hottest current topic in Mukah town is the proposed Swiflet Eco-Park to be set up near Balingian. The eco-park is in the news since the signing of a joint venture agreement to set it up between Sarawak Economic Development Corporation (SEDC) and Borneo Resource Synergy Sdn Bhd (BRS) recently. Established swihlet ranchers or farmers in the town and the aspiring ones from other districts in the division attended a Swiftlet Ranching Course organised by SEDC at Kingwood Hotel on January 31. The course, officiated by Assistant Minister of Tourism cum SEDC Chairman, Datuk Haji Talib Zulpilip, was participated by more than 200 people from throughout the division. In his speech at the event, Talib urged the local swiftlet farmers to adopt an eco-friendly approach to swiftlet farming, similar to that practised by their West Malaysian counterparts. "In West Malaysia, switflet farmers have better skills than the locals, here, so it pays to adopt their approach," he said. Talib who is also Jepak State Assemblyman, added that if swiftlet farming was taken seriously, it could become a profitable business venture. He advised rural folks, especially Bumiputera to take up swiftlet farming. He promised to help them if they carried it out accordingly to the rulesand regulations stipulated by the supervising agency. On proper licences to swiftlet farmers, he said the government might consider issuing them if the farming sites did not pose any environmental and health hazards to the surrounding communities. Indeed, since the lucrative swiflet ranching was introduced less than a decade ago, many courses have been held here and in other nearby major towns. Most have received overwhelming response from the aspiring swiftlet farmers in the division. Hence, it is relevant to highlight the subject in this "Forward Looking" column which is the manifestation of positive attitudes of Mukahans towards new things despite the fact that swiftlet ranching has been practiced by the sizeable Chinese community in Mukah for quite sometime. The proposed Swiftlet Eco-Park will involve the construction of 40 three-storey terrace units (each measuring 20 ft x 80 ft) and 15 three-storey bun-galow units (each measuring 35 ft x 63 ft). It is located along the Mukah-Balingian coastal highway, 44 kilometres from Mukah Town and 15 kilometres from Balingian Bazaar. Recently, the government approved eight more lots with a total area of 68.97 acres in Mukah Division. Swiftlet farming,has attracted a lot of interest among entrepreneurs in the state due to the lucrative returns. Most started farming by converting empty shop house lots into birdhouses. This contravened the Wild Life Protection (Edible Bird's Nests) (Amendment) Rules, 2006. As a result, the relevant authority issued closure notices to all birdhouses operating from shop lots and other similar structures in the urban areas. In October, 2008, enforcement officers from Sarawak Forestry Corporation (SFC) conducted an operation to remove some of the empty bird nests and rearing equipment, especially sound system from the farmhouses located on the upper floors of the shophouses in Mukah Town. The operation, believed to be the first to be carried out in the state then, made headlines inmost local newspapers. It became the most talked about topic in the coffee shops In most of the major towns in Sarawak. It received mixed reactions from the people. At the end of the day, however, everybody began to realise the noble intention of the authority which wanted awell-planned swiftlet farming industry in the state. Two months later, on December 15, 2008, a Commercialised Swiftlet Ranching Entrepreneurs Course was held at Menara Pehin Setia Raja in Mukah. In his speech at the course, Chief Minister's Department Bumiputera Entrepreneurs Development Unit (CMDBEDU) Advisor, Dato' Adzmy Abdullah said Sarawak had the great potential of becoming the "Swiftlet Valley" of the nation. "With the presence of tile swiftlets or Burung Walit in abundance in the state especially Mukah, Sarawak could be easily dubbed as the Swiftlet Valley of Malaysia. "And for Mukah in particular, maybe this Burung Walit could become an additional symbol or tagline of the town next to the traditional symbol of fish," he said. Adzmy stated this while representing the Assistant Minister in the Chief Minister's Department and Assistant Minister Planning and Resource Management, Haji Mohd Naroden Haji Majais at the closing of the course. Describing swiftlets as special gifts from "The Almighty", he said swiftlet ranching was a multi-billion dollar industry which should be taken seriously by the local. "You just imagine Hong Kong alone imports RM22 billion worth of bird's nests per year which is equivalent to our total export of oil palm. "And we're only talking about Hong Kong. What about the mainland China, and also the Arab world and many other consuming countries? Hence, this industry is a multi-million dollar industry. And right now, Malaysia only exports about RM8 to 9 billion," he said. Adzmy pointed out that Malaysia could easily leapfrog Thailand to second spot In the world If it fully exploited the abundance of swiftlets in the country, especially Sarawak. "I would prefer to call it "Wallet" and not as Burung Walit because we're talking about making money. "Right now, Malaysia is third behind Thailand and Indonesia in terms of bird's nest producers in the world. The swiftlet is not a migrating bird and now it can only be found in this region, namely, Malaysia, Thailand and Indonesia. "Hence, we're very fortunate for that blessing and we should be synergizing and pooling the resources available to exploit that priceless gift. "Sarawak has a conducive and suitable environment for this swiftlet habitation which should not be out to a waste," he said, adding that the colony of swiftlets was already in the state. He also advised the existing and prospective swiftlet ranchers in Mukah and the state to apply for the licence. He assured them that any move made by the government was for the benefit of the people. `Right now, I would like to advise you all just to apply for the licence. "This highly potential industry needs all of us including the government and existing or future operators to work hand in hand to come up with a solution of a win-win situation for all," reiterated Adzmy. The edible bird's nest industry has existed for the past 100 years in the tropical region, Indonesia as the leading producing country accounting for 60% to 70% of the world's total yearly output worth billions in USD. The other countries are Thailand, Vietnam, Cambodia, Burma, Laos and Malaysia. In 2000, Malaysia's production accounted for a mere 3% to 5%, mainly from the caves in East Malaysia. In Indonesia alone, there are no less than 500,000 bird houses, and the same bird house industry has also been in existence in Peninsular Malaysia for more than 50 years. In the 1990s, there were, however, less than 100 bird houses in Malaysia. Most of these bird houses are found in abandoned pre-war or colonial buildings along the coastal townships. These are almost natural occurrences with some no less than 50 years of history, very little renovation or technique used to enhance the population growth of the swfitlets. The owners simply considered themselves lucky that the birds chose their buildings to roost. In the past, nobody had the technology or know-how to lure the swiftlets into the houses. After the political instability In 1998, many Indonesian entrepreneurs cum refugees shifted their funds to West Malaysia. In 1997, due to the economic crisis, the value of propetties dropped. The Indonesians started to set up joint ventures with the locals, investing in the properties and converting many vacant and unproductive buildings into the modern birdhouses that we know of today. Because the investors were the pioneers in the industry, many of the investments succeeded. This prompted the locals, especially the owners of empty and unproductive buildings who were facing bank fore closing and some literally bankrupt, that this could be a way out for them in the bad economy. They rushed to Indonesia to learn the trade secrets and the technology. On their return, they started to turn their unproductive properties into the swiftlet houses. Now, swiftlet ranching has become one of the most lucrative industries in Malaysia. Eastern Times 09/02/2010 |
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