Mohd Uzir (centre) during a field survey for the 2024 Agricultural Census at the Ternakan Lembu Sado owned by Mohd Zul Azrey Ismail (in yellow, second from left) in Besut, Terengganu.
BESUT: The 2024 Agricultural Census entered its 43rd day today (Aug 18) with a visit by the team from the Department of Statistics Malaysia (DOSM) to Terengganu.
The survey, which began on July 7, is still being conducted by DOSM and will end on Oct 10.
This large-scale census includes surveying households and business establishments involved in agricultural activities such as food and commodity crops, livestock, fisheries and aquaculture, as well as logging and forestry.
During the visit, the 2024 Agricultural Census commissioner Datuk Seri Dr Mohd Uzir Mahidin shared that over 92,000 residences and 480 business establishments that were involved in agricultural activities were being surveyed across Terengganu.
As of yesterday, about 55,815 residences (60.4%) and 363 business establishments (75.6%) had been accounted for, with 19.8% of agricultural residences were completed. The survey results indicated that the crop subsector was the largest contributor to the agricultural sector at 69.0%, followed by the livestock (24.2%), fisheries (6.5%), and forestry and logging (0.2%).
The Hulu Terengganu district recorded the highest percentage of surveyed residences at 75.1%, followed by Kemaman (72.0%), Dungun (69.5%), Kuala Terengganu (63.2%), Besut (60.9%), Setiu (53.3%), Kuala Nerus (46.1%) and Marang (45.1%).
Besut district also had the highest percentage of agricultural residences at 30.9%, followed by Hulu Terengganu (30.3%), Setiu (27.7%), Dungun (20.2%), Kemaman (17.8%), Kuala Terengganu (14.3%), Marang (13.3%) and Kuala Nerus (8.9%).
The agricultural sector in Terengganu is the third-largest contributor to the state’s gross domestic profit (GDP), accounting for 7.5% (RM2.9 billion) last year.
The crop subsector is the largest contributor within the agricultural sector at 58.6%, followed by fisheries (15.6%), livestock (14.5%), and forestry and logging (11.4%).
Recognising the importance of this sector, the 2024 Agricultural Census is a crucial effort to assess the performance of the agricultural industry here in Terengganu.
Mohd Uzir and his census team, which included the Agricultural Census deputy commissioner Marlini Sahul Hamid, made the field trip in Terengganu from Aug 17 to 19.
They visited various subsectors within each district, including the aquaculture in Kampung Chabang, Kerteh, Kemaman, Sado cattle/dairy goat farming in Kampung Kuala Besut, and the sweet melon cultivation in Kampung Tok Dor, Besut, among others.
The Terengganu Sweet Melon (MMT) is the first variety of rock melon announced as the state’s official fruit. According to the Terengganu State Department of Agriculture, MMT production recorded RM3.14mil with 35 operators in 2023, with Besut having the highest number of operators amounting to 11.
Visits were also made to the King Mango plantation at the Rhu Tapai Agricultural Centre, Setiu; a swiftlet farming at Walit Timur Enterprise, Kuala Nerus; a herb plantation at Pulau Herba, Tasik Kenyir, Hulu Terengganu; grazing field projects in Kampung Binjai Kertas, Hulu Terengganu; coconut cultivation in Kampung Batu Putih, Marang; and eggplant cultivation in Kampung Batu 7, Dungun.
DOSM hopes the 2024 Agricultural Census in Terengganu will continue to receive the commitment and cooperation of residents and business operators involved in agricultural activities throughout the census period.
The public need not worry about sharing information as confidentiality is guaranteed under the Statistics Act 1965 (Revised 1989).
The collection of accurate data is essential for producing a comprehensive database and establishing a new benchmark for creating the national agricultural database.
DOSM has launched OpenDOSM NextGen, a medium that provides a data catalogue and visualisations to facilitate users in analysing various data, accessible through the portal open.dosm.gov.my.
Visit www.myagricensus.gov.my for more information.
The theme for the Agricultural Census is “Key to Agricultural Progress”.
The Government has declared Oct 20 as the National Statistics Day (MyStats Day). This year, the theme for MyStats Day is “Statistics The Pulse of Life”.
DOSM is also celebrating its Diamond Jubilee this year.
