| Danial Norjidi |
THE Ministry of Primary Resources and Tourism (MPRT) hosted a Muzakarah session with members of the Legislative Council (LegCo) yesterday.
The session was chaired by Dato Seri Setia Awang Haji Ali bin Haji Apong, the Minister of Primary Resources and Tourism.
Also present were Dr Haji Abdul Manaf bin Haji Metussin, Permanent Secretary at the Ministry of Primary Resources and Tourism, as well as Wardi bin Haji Mohammad Ali, Deputy Permanent Secretary (Tourism), directors and section heads as well as senior officers of the ministry and its departments.
In his speech, the minister highlighted the MPRT’s emphasis on improving efforts towards generating GDP growth, which involves the participation of all stakeholders whether in the government or in the private sector, especially farmers in agriculture, livestock, fisheries, forestry and entrepreneurs in the tourism sector.
At the same time, the ministry requires the direct involvement of investors from Brunei and abroad, whether through joint ventures and also for contract farming to help accelerate the growth of production of these sectors.
MPRT launched its 2016-2020 Strategic Plan earlier this year.
Minister of Primary Resources and Tourism Dato Seri Setia Awang Haji Ali bin Haji Apong at the Muzakarah session. – DANIAL NORJIDI
As stated in a press release from the ministry, among the foundations of the Strategic Plan was the titah of His Majesty Sultan Haji Hassanal Bolkiah Mu’izzaddin Waddaulah ibni Al-Marhum Sultan Haji Omar ‘Ali Saifuddien Sa’adul Khairi Waddien, Sultan and Yang Di-Pertuan of Brunei Darussalam in conjunction with New Year 2016, which among others touched on slow economic growth, and the need to redouble efforts to improve domestic production – particularly in the non-oil and gas sector, through increased productivity and also regarding the need for local producers to target export markets to ensure continued growth.
The MPRT’s vision is ‘Towards rapid growth in the output of primary resources and tourism industry towards being able to contribute to economic growth in order to achieve the Brunei Vision 2035.’
Its mission is, “Leading the output growth of the primary resources and tourism industry to become a significant contributor to GDP growth by encouraging investment locally and from abroad, and by putting emphasis on increasing productivity, the use of high technology, and focus on the export market.”
Generally, all the efforts of the ministry are based on four main pillars which include: GDP growth; increased productivity; increase in export; and improved sustainability.
A short briefing regarding this was presented by the Deputy Permanent Secretary (Tourism) at the MPRT, following the minister’s speech.
One area that has gained the attention of LegCo members pertains to the importance of productivity improvements that serve as a catalyst to the growth of GDP.
As is stated in the MPRT press statement, “Continuous improvement in productivity will help accelerate the production growth of the primary resources sector, reduce unit costs, and enhance competitiveness, allowing our products to penetrate export markets.”
In line with this, it is expected that the use of new technology, modern techniques, innovation and automation in production of products and services can be used widely.
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