The government will establish a Rubber Industry Smallholder Development Authority (RISDA) Center of Excellence in Padang Terap at a cost of RM15 million.
The Prime Minister, Datuk Seri Ismail Sabri Yaakob said, the RISDA Center of Excellence will train local children at Padang Terap to learn about various rubber-related matters.
According to him, it is in preparation before being placed to work in Kedah Rubber City which will be developed in the district.
Kedah Rubber City will offer 6,000 job opportunities.
At the same time, the Prime Minister also announced that the government plans to build a four-lane road connecting Pokok Sena to Burung Durian, Padang Terap.
He said that the upgrading of the road will make Kuala Nerang a city of choice for tourists from Thailand.
“When I went to Thailand to meet with the Thai Prime Minister, we both agreed to develop the urban areas bordering Malaysia and Thailand.
“This is because almost half, about RM10 billion, of the total Malaysia-Thailand trade is contributed by border trade.
“Because Padang Terap is located near the border, we plan to develop the four-lane road.
“God willing, Padang Terap will become more developed, not only as an industrial area with the existence of Kedah Rubber City, the arrival of tourists will also increase with the existence of a four-lane road,” he said.
He said this while speaking in conjunction with the Malaysian Family’s ‘Kenuri Rakyat’ program at Kuala Nerang National School, Padang Terap, today.
Meanwhile, the Prime Minister said, the government always looks after the interests of the people, especially the rural communities and low-income groups (B40).
He said that as much as RM80 billion in subsidies was spent by the government even though originally only RM32 billion was allocated in the 2022 Budget.
“When the world oil price rises, if we let it be RM4 more for a liter of RON95 but we give subsidies so that the price does not rise.
“Similarly, when the price of palm oil rises, it is good for palm oil growers but we also have to increase the subsidy because otherwise the price of cooking oil will burden all the people.
“The electricity tariff is also the same, 60 percent of the coal we buy from Indonesia, next year the subsidy will reach RM17 billion due to the increase in the price of coal.
“Indonesia is the world’s coal producer and exports to Malaysia but they raised electricity tariffs. We who buy coal do not raise tariffs because we want to protect the interests of the people,” he explained.
