KOTA KINABALU, April 30 — The Sabah state government has issued a circular banning open burning, including land clearing for agriculture, during the hot weather period linked to El Niño to reduce the risk of forest and plantation fires.

Sabah Agriculture, Fisheries and Food Industry Minister Datuk Jamawi Jaafar said the move is a precautionary step ahead of the hot, dry weather expected between April and August this year.

“Hot weather could trigger small fires from open burning or land clearing.

“We have already issued a circular banning shifting cultivation, land clearing and burning during this period to reduce the risk of forest fires and fires in plantation areas,” he said, replying to Nurulalsah Hassan Alban (Warisan-Sungai Sibuga) in the Sabah State Legislative Assembly session today.

Nurulalsah also asked whether there were incentives to promote Kebun Dapur, a subsistence farming initiative in her constituency and what the state government was doing to ensure Sabah’s food supply remains secure if fuel prices continue to rise.

Jamawi said the ministry had also set up a special committee to monitor the impact of El Niño and the global geopolitical crisis on the state’s agriculture sector.

He said reports from the Malaysian Meteorological Department since January show that Sabah is expected to see hot, dry weather over the next few months, which could affect agricultural output.

Jamawi said global developments have also raised food security concerns, with rice producers such as Vietnam and Thailand considering export limits to meet domestic demand. — Bernama