Malaysia Firm On E-waste Import Ban

KUALA LUMPUR, Oct 9 (Bernama) -- Malaysia does not allow the import of electrical and electronic waste (e-waste) from other countries to prevent environmental pollution and protect public health.

Deputy Minister of Natural Resources and Environmental Sustainability Datuk Seri Huang Tiong Sii said all 128 licensed facilities in the country are only permitted to process e-waste generated domestically.

“Malaysia does not permit the importation of electrical and electronic waste for processing in the country. The ministry remains firm that Malaysia will not become a dumping ground for scheduled waste from abroad,” he said during question time in the Dewan Rakyat today.

He was responding to a question from Young Syefura Othman (PH–Bentong) who asked whether the ministry intended to expand licensed processing plants to handle imported electronic waste as part of efforts to curb smuggling activities that harm the nation.

Huang said e-waste contains toxic materials such as lead, mercury and cadmium, which must be treated and disposed of safely to protect the environment and public health.

In a separate question, the Agriculture and Food Security Ministry (KPKM) assured that efforts to boost local agricultural production are being carried out systematically to meet national targets and reduce reliance on imported raw materials.

Its deputy minister, Datuk Seri Arthur Joseph Kurup, said the Large-Scale Smart Padi Project (Smart SBB) programme, modelled after the Sekinchan approach, along with the five-season padi cultivation project within two years, is being implemented to increase domestic rice production.

“It involves an area of 3,000 hectares, implemented in stages beginning in 2024 within the Muda Agricultural Development Authority (MADA) region.

“In addition, to boost local beef production, the Ruminant Development Programme focuses on breeding and expanding high-quality cattle populations in line with the target of achieving a 50 per cent Self-Sufficiency Rate (SSR) by 2030,” he said.

To strengthen the aquaculture industry, Arthur said KPKM has introduced targeted programmes such as the Aquaculture Industrial Zone (ZIA), the Aquaculture Integration Programme and MADANI Community Farm initiatives to increase production to 958,000 metric tonnes by 2030.

He was responding to Datuk Seri Jalaluddin Alias (BN–Jelebu), who asked about the country’s main imported raw materials and the measures taken to reduce dependence on imports.

-- BERNAMA