1. Bagi pihak Suruhanjaya Sekuriti Malaysia, saya ingin mengalu-alukan kedatangan Timbalan Ketua Setiausaha dan semua tetamu serta peserta ke persidangan fintech SCxSC [pronounced SC by SC] yang ke-10.
2. Selepas mengadakan acara ini secara maya selama dua tahun berturut-turut disebabkan pandemik, ini adalah kali pertama pihak SC dapat mengadakan persidangan secara bersemuka.
3. Fintech SCxSC menghimpunkan pakar dan inovator terkemuka dari dalam dan luar negara untuk membincangkan trend dan perkembangan terkini dalam bidang yang berkembang pesat. Malah, boleh dikatakan ia adalah acara yang dinanti-nantikan industri teknologi kewangan.

4. Salah satu agenda penting yang perlu diberikan perhatian masa ini adalah pertumbuhan dan transformasi sektor pertanian tempatan.
5. Ianya memainkan peranan yang penting, iaitu menyumbang kepada pendapatan negara, perolehan eksport, serta mewujudkan peluang pekerjaan. Sektor pertanian mewakili kira-kira 10 peratus¹  daripada tenaga kerja negara dan menyumbang 6 peratus daripada eksport keseluruhan Malaysia.
6. Walaupun sektor ini telah berkembang ke tahap tanaman ladang skala besar, komersial dan berorientasi eksport, sumbangannya kepada Keluaran Dalam Negara Kasar (KDNK) Malaysia secara relatifnya telah menurun.
7. Pada dekad 1970-an, sektor ini menyumbang sekitar 29 peratus daripada KDNK negara. Pada tahun 2022, sumbangan sektor pertanian hanya 6.6 peratus²  [2021: 7.1 peratus]. Ini disebabkan oleh transformasi struktur ekonomi negara kepada aktiviti yang berasaskan perindustrian dan perkhidmatan.
8. Dalam Indeks Keselamatan Makanan Global (GFSI) 2022³, kedudukan Malaysia telah juga menurun. Ini menunjukkan jaminan makanan negara berada pada tahap sederhana sahaja. Jadi, kita perlu berusaha lagi untuk mengukuhkan lagi kedudukan negara dalam GFSI dan juga memastikan sistem makanan kekal berdaya tahan dalam pelbagai keadaaan. Ini adalah penting kerana sektor pertanian adalah pembekal utama sumber makanan kepada penduduk di negara ini.
   
   

Keterjaminan makanan adalah isu global

Para hadirin sekalian,

9. Keterjaminan makanan atau food security adalah penting bagi memastikan kelangsungan hidup dan kemakmuran masyarakat.
10. Meskipun pengeluaran makanan negara menunjukkan peningkatan, ianya masih jauh daripada untuk mencapai paras ‘self-sufficiency’ dalam bekalan makanan.
11. Tambahan pula, pelbagai faktor sampingan juga memberi impak secara langsung atau tidak langsung kepada rantaian bekalan atau supply chain makanan kita. Perubahan iklim (climate change) merupakan salah satu faktor yang boleh menyebabkan hasil pertanian menurun. Contohnya, hasil tanaman beras akan terancam dan menurun jika kekurangan hujan.
12. Konflik geopolitik dan krisis ekonomi global juga boleh mengganggu rantaian global untuk makanan, baja, dan lain-lain. Semua faktor-faktor ini juga menyumbang kepada kenaikan harga barang dan peningkatan inflasi sejak kebelakangan ini.
13. Selain itu, penduduk di Asia dijangka akan meningkat ke 5 bilion menjelang tahun 2050. Pertumbuhan populasi ini dan peningkatan permintaan akan menekan sistem pengeluaran makanan yang sedia ada.

The way forward for Agri-businesses

Ladies and gentlemen,

14. The race to net zero will also reshape the agriculture sector. Rice, for example, accounts for 10% of global emissions of methane⁵. Cattle and livestock contribute 40% of global emissions of methane. Therefore, agri-businesses must evolve to not only remain productive but minimise their carbon footprint.
15. Thus, the agriculture sector will need to be innovative and adopt new technologies to increase productivity, reduce waste, as well as ensure efficient and sustainable food production.
16. These include embracing Big Data and cutting-edge technologies such as artificial intelligence (AI), robots, drones and smart sensors. Imagine automated machines that can plant, harvest and spray with precision.
17. As land becomes scarcer, the potential for vertical and urban farming will also grow.
18. Future agri-businesses will also have to be highly sustainable. Imagine scaling up organic farming, or the adoption of chemical-free biological pesticide control methods.
19. There is also potential in climate-resilient crops – drought-tolerant, disease-resistant varieties that produce consistent yields even in adverse weather conditions.
20. This is not far from what we are already seeing today. I was told that the Malaysia Digital Economy Corporation’s (MDEC) Digital Agtech initiative has already improved productivity of Grade A chillies from 25% to about 90%⁶.

Ladies and gentlemen,

21. Access to finance is key to a brighter future for agriculture. This is especially for smallholders and agritech-preneurs who want to modernize agriculture and strengthen R&D.
22. And at SCxSC today, we will be discussing new dimensions of financing agriculture sector. We believe that the capital market can be a powerful enabler and accelerator to help our country achieve its food security agenda.
23. Alternative financing avenues such as equity crowdfunding (ECF) and peer-to peer (P2P) financing allow investors with greater risk-appetite to mobilise capital directly to agri-preneurs. This provides more options for younger and high-growth companies to access capital relevant to their business risk profiles.
24. Since introduction in 2015, both ECF and P2P have supported over 7,000 micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs), helping them raise more than RM4.4 billion.
25. Of which, only 600 agri-related MSMEs across the entire value chain - upstream, mid-stream and downstream - have raised close to RM300 million. There is still room for growth.
26. In addition to that, I would like to talk about MyCIF, the Malaysia Co-investment Fund (MyCIF).
27. MyCIF has been effective in helping agro-preneurs to raise financing via ECF and P2P. As you are probably aware, the government set up MyCIF in 2019 to co-invest with private investors in MSMEs and Social Enterprises through ECF and P2P platforms.
28. In fact, Malaysia was the first country in this region to adopt a co-investment model specifically for alternative finance platforms.
29. MyCIF was instrumental in providing MSMEs with financing during the Covid-19 pandemic. It has stepped in and lowered its investment ratio to 1:2 to enable more funds to be channelled to MSMEs. Consequently, the total amount raised on ECF and P2P platforms grew by more than 300% between 2019 and 2021.
30. In 2022, MyCIF introduced a special allocation ratio of 1:2 for the agriculture sector.
31. We have seen traction for this initiative. In 2022, 4 times as many agri-business raised funds through ECF and P2P platforms. These include agri-businesses involved in end-to-end livestock value chain, Hellas Technology Farm - a tech-based indoor sea fish farm, and Agroprenuer Farms, a tech platform to link smallholder farmers with end-buyers.

32. In addition to the initiatives mentioned, we have introduced GROW, which is a new collaborative programme under the SCxSC umbrella. It is our hope that this will be a platform for alternative financing to enhance growth in strategic and underserved sectors.
33. GROW formed part of our efforts to make SCxSC more nimble and targeted. It aims to facilitate action-based discussions to enhance policy effectiveness and better steer fintech development targets.
34. This year, “GROW” will prioritise agriculture. We hope to:
• Build awareness on alternative financing for the agriculture sector;
• Enhance financing access for agri-based MSMEs; and
• Encourage investments in agro-preneurs

35. We have lined-up many exciting programmes for the event today. This is the result of continued support from the government, industry players and other relevant stakeholders. Thus, I would like to take this opportunity to thank our partners – Kementerian Pertanian dan Keterjaminan Makanan (KPKM), Agrobank and MDEC – as well as industry collaborators, exhibitors, speakers and members of the media for your invaluable contributions and support.

Tuan-tuan dan puan-puan yang dihormati,

36. Komitmen dan kerjasama daripada semua pihak adalah penting untuk memastikan sektor pertanian terus kekal berdaya saing dan berkembang. Ini adalah kerana ia berhubung rapat dengan usaha menjamin bekalan makanan yang mencukupi untuk rakyat Malaysia.
37. Saya berharap persidangan hari ini menjadi platform yang bermakna untuk berkongsi pendapat bagi mencorak masa depan sektor pertanian yang lebih cemerlang. Semoga usaha daripada semua pihak para hari ini membuahkan hasil demi kepentingan bersama.