Nurul Atiqah Binti Mohd Suib

Good agricultural practice (GAP) helps increase productivity by producing fresh fruit bunches (FFBs), and selling FFBs will increase Independent Smallholders’ (ISH) income. However, although GAP promotes increased productivity, the effectiveness of GAP in delivering the well-being of the ISH in oil palm production areas remains to be determined. To that end, this study (i) measures the smallholder’s well-being index, (ii) compares the well-being index by states in Malaysia, and (iii) maps the relationship between GAP implementation, productivity, and well-being. The study selected respondents using purposive sampling (PS). PS identifies and selects individuals with Malaysian Sustainable Palm Oil (MSPO) certification and knowledge and experience of GAP. As a result, the research interviewed 564 ISHs with MSPO certification from 162 Sustainable Palm Oil Clusters (SPOC). The study used Principal Components Analysis (PCA) and the Structural Equation Model (SEM) framework to achieve the objectives. The study found that the average ISH well-being index was 0.62, and ISHs in Sabah had the highest well-being, with 0.73 compared to other states. The study also found that GAP influences productivity and is positively and significantly related to well-being. Therefore, it indicates to ISHs and the government the importance of GAP implementation to increase ISHs’ productivity and well-being.

The tourism sector is expected to continue experiencing a significant increase in tourist arrivals. Meanwhile, the labour requirement especially in the tourism sub-sector has been anticipated to increase. However, the Covid-19 outbreak has interrupted the number of tourist arrivals to Malaysia. Tourism sector’s receipt and the labour requirement will also be affected. The objective of this study is to forecast the labour requirements in the tourism sector in Malaysia. This study provides an initial overview of the labour requirements including during the Covid-19 outbreak which occurred in 2020. The method used in this study was the Input-Output method. The labour requirements were projected for three years, i.e. 2017, 2019 and 2020. Projections were also made based on a 25 percent decrease in Chinese tourist spending in Malaysia. The results showed that the labour requirements in 2017, 2019 and 2020 increased by 2.6 million people, 2.8 million people and 3.0 million people, respectively. However, when there was a decline in Chinese tourist spending, the labour requirement was 2.6 million people indicating a drop by -11.40 percent. The entertainment and recreation services were the most affected sectors when the Covid-19 outbreak occurred, at a rateof-66.31 percent. Discussions elaborated on the importance of labour requirements estimation in the tourism industry in response to the Covid-19 outbreak. Implications of the study are also highlighted.