Sago palm - pot of gold for Melanau ethnic group

By Hasnah Jusid

MUKAH, Dec 5 -- ‘Inau dengah’, (how are you) greets Arthur Ignatius Lai, when met at Kampung Tegup, Dalat here, as we headed for the forest and he walked me through a day in the life of a sago palm harvester.

Arthur cultivates and cuts down sago palm trees which had been the main economic activity of the people of Melanau, especially those around Mukah and Dalat.

With a chainsaw and a machete neatly tucked around his waist, Arthur, 38, was all set for his daily routine to head for the forest area to gather sago palms to be processed into food such as sago flour.

As I followed him into the forest through the muddy ground to see for myself the process of cutting the palm trees also known as balau here, I could not help feeling awed by Arthur's enthusiasm and determination in taking on this daily monumental task, despite his relatively small physique. 

He began by clearing the area around the tree, determine its directional felling, cut the palm tree with his chainsaw and push the chopped pieces to the roadside or riverside, which definitely was no easy feat.

Usually a sago palm tree will be cut into 12 parts, each measuring 33 inches and weighing over  50 kilogrammes, before they are sent directly to the factory or sold to middleman at RM12 each.

At RM12 a piece, the amount may be pittance and not worth the effort, compared to the money he used to earn when he was working in a logging camp, but the father of two who has been at the job for the past 10 years said, he is now used to it and earned enough to support his family.

“It is hard work alright, but it suits me fine and like my grandmother used  to say, those who work hard will always be rewarded.

"Sago palms are like gold to the Melanaus here," said Arthur, who also provide sago palm cutting service at the farms around Dalat at a fee of RM6 per piece.

Meanwhile Adolfo Junior Ngu, 18, who has been following Arthur said, he too has got accustomed to the routine since he was 12.

“I used to help out during the school holidays and like many others here, this is now my source of income,” Adolfo said adding that his dream was to own a sago palm farm some day.

Visitors to Dalat will definitely see the slogan at the town roundabout which reads 'Berakar Rumbia, Berinti Budaya' with rows of pieces of rumbia floating in the main rivers, like 'gold ingots' waiting to be cahnneled to a nearby factory for processing.

Mukah has the biggest sago estate plantation area in Sarawak at 45,392 hectares, with Dalat district alone covered with 28,169 hectares and currently there are two sago factories in Mukah and six in Dalat.

The Sarawak state government is focusing on sago palm development through the establishment of the Nipah and Sago Palm Industry Development Board in an effort to increase the income of sago palm smallholders and improve quality by increasing production and introducing new technology.

Dalat District Rumbia Smallholders Association chairman Benedict Pon Akie said the sago pam industry in the district would not go extinct as sago palm has been a traditional industry for centuries and could not be separated from the Melanaus, although some were now switching to oil palm.

As such, he proposed that the state government provides 10 acres of land for each interested household in the area to be planted with sago palm, that can be harvested after seven to nine years to ensure the viability of the industry which is very close to the heart of the Melanau ethnic group.

“One acre of land can be planted with 60 trees, so with 10 acres there will be 600 trees. Instead of the land lying fallow, it is better for us to cultivate sago palm because it is very valuable and has many uses. You can’t get wealthy cultivating sago palm but it is enough for survival,” he said.

He added that it had also been proposed that short courses be held to teach youths on sago palm cultivation especially those whose parents own uncultivated land.

He also hoped that the establishment of the Nipah and Sago Palm Industry Development Board would help resolve the issue of sago prices currently set by the factories, which was unfair to smallholders.

Meanwhile, Universiti Malaysia Sarawak adjunct professor Dr Jeniri Amir in an article published in a portal last September said that in the last three decades of the 19th century, Sarawak's financial stability depended heavily on the sago industry.

Jeniri, who is of Melanau descent from Kampung Tellian Tengah here, said Sarawak supplied half of the world's sago needs during the period and because of that, sago and sago palm were important assets and considered as gold that had helped the economy of the Melanau community.

“The sago palm remains important as a multi-purpose tree, not only to make various types of food but also for other use. They are expected to continue to be important products in the future,” said Jeniri, who has done a lot of research and written books on the Melanau ethnic group.

-- BERNAMA