KUALA LUMPUR: Malaysia is preparing to submit its database on forests, agriculture and land use to the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO) next year.
This is part of a concerted national strategy to upgrade the country’s current standard-risk classification, said Plantation and Commodities Minister Datuk Seri Johari Abdul Ghani.
Johari said the government is currently collating the latest facts and progress of forestry data from all state governments, in order to get the European Union (EU) to formally recognise the achievement under its sustainability agenda.
“The next submission will be next year. Right now, we are collecting data from all the state governments. All states, from Perlis to Johor and all the way to Sarawak, must play their part.
“They are responsible for what happens within their own borders, especially on forest-related matters,” he told a press conference at the launch of Malaysian Sustainable Palm Oil (MSPO) Impact Alliance here today.
They must submit this data to the National Resource and Environmental System and the ministry will review it before proceeding with the submission, Johari added.
Malaysia is currently classified by the EU as a “standard risk” country under its new EU Deforestration Regulation (EUDR), alongside Indonesia and Brazil.
The EUDR requires exporters of cocoa, coffee, palm oil, soybean, cattle, rubber and timber to the EU to ensure their products are deforestation-free and legally sourced.
Meanwhile, the MSPO Impact Alliance launched today is a multi-stakeholder platform to position and strengthen Malaysia’s leadership in sustainable palm oil.
The initiative builds on MSPO as the country’s national certification scheme and is designed to accelerate inclusive industry transformation.
The MSPO Impact Alliance is backed by 28 founding members .They include global FMCG companies, plantation growers, smallholder representatives, industry associations, civil societies, financial institutions, certification bodies, think tanks and international organisations.
“I understand that members will convene the first steering committee meeting in the coming weeks to shape the priorities of this journey.
“I am hopeful that this will mark the beginning of a meaningful collaboration and fresh ideas that will carry MSPO and the Malaysian palm oil industry to greater heights,” Johari said.
Among the potential pilot initiatives under the MSPO Impact Alliance are initiatives to prepare smallholders for compliance with the EUDR, benchmarking MSPO standards against the responsible sourcing requirements of global FMCG companies and developing transparent cost sharing models to support smallholders’ sustainability journey.
The MSPO Impact Alliance will also explore innovative financing instruments linked to certification, replanting strategies that restore biodiversity and a simplified complaints and grievance mechanism to strengthen worker protections.
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