KUALA LUMPUR: Malaysian Rubber Board (MRB) urges the remaining 158,575 smallholders who have yet to apply for the RM600 Monsoon Season Aid to do so now.
"There are 158,575 smallholders in our register who have not applied for the RM600 Monsoon Season Aid," said MRB deputy director general Dr Suarni Sumormo.
"We urge them to do so now because this cash assistance is meant to help smallholders tide over when they are not able to tap their trees due to the rain and flood situation," he told reporters in a briefing here today.
The aid is to ensure small farmers and rubber tappers' welfare are attended to in this monsoon season.
The Government has allocated RM261 million for the purpose.
Since the fund was initiated in November 2017, Suarni said it had benefitted 325,366 small farmers and rubber tappers.
Application is open from September 1, 2017 until January 31 this year.
Suarni urged small farmers and rubber tappers who have not applied for the cash assistance to do so by January 31, 2018.
They can do so in three methods:
1) online application at http://bmt.lgm.gov.my/Home/Application ;
2) application via the MRB Monsoon Season Aid mobile app which can be downloaded from Google Play Store;
3) manually submit the Monsoon Season Aid form at any MRB district or state offices.
Suarni said low global rubber price is a huge concern among rubber tappers throughout southeast Asia.
In December 2017, governments of Thailand, Indonesia and Malaysia pledged to withhold 350,000 tonnes of natural rubber exports until March this year.
"Malaysia's commitment is to reduce rubber exports by 20,000 tonnes until March 2018. Following this move, we foresee Standard Malaysian Rubber (SMR 20) pricing to rise as high as RM6.50 per kg from the current RM5.80," he said.