State govts urged to gazette padi-growing areas amid decline in rice self-sufficiency ratio

By DayakDaily Team

PUTRAJAYA, Oct 2: State governments have been urged to gazette padi-growing areas to sustain rice cultivation and strengthen the country’s food security after the rice self-sufficiency ratio (SSR) declined last year.

SSR measures how much of a country’s domestic demand for a particular food or agricultural product it can meet with its own production.

According to the Agriculture and Food Security Ministry (KPKM), the proposal was among the matters discussed at the second 2026 Agriculture and Food Security Ministers’ Meeting with state agriculture executive councillors, chaired by Minister Datuk Seri Mohamad Sabu yesterday (Oct 1).

KPKM said the proposal takes into account the decline in rice cultivation areas, which contributed to the fall in the rice SSR from 68 per cent in 2018 to 54.3 per cent in 2025, as well as a recommendation in the Auditor-General’s Report to gazette padi-growing areas to preserve the amount of land used for rice cultivation.