Answer for Oral Question PL008

QUESTION

Yang Berhormat Dayang Hajah Safiah binti Sheikh Haji Abd. Salam

Yang Berhormat Dayang Hajah Safiah binti Sheikh Haji Abd. Salam requested Yang Berhormat Menteri Sumber-Sumber Utama dan Pelancongan to state the initiatives to assist local entrepreneurs with the potential and capability to expand their business output on a large scale, particularly to penetrate regional markets and contribute continuously to the economy.

ANSWER

Yang Berhormat Menteri Sumber-Sumber Utama dan Pelancongan

The Ministry of Primary Resources and Tourism certainly gives particular attention to the development of local entrepreneurs with the potential to expand on a large scale, not only to meet domestic market needs, but also to penetrate regional markets and subsequently contribute continuously to the country’s economic growth.

In this regard, the Ministry’s approach is based on three main pillars, namely:

1. Strengthening entrepreneurs’ production capacity and operational scale

For the agriculture, agrifood and fisheries sectors, the Ministry focuses on the opening and optimisation of site utilisation, the adoption of modern and high technologies, enhanced biosecurity, facilitating access to financing, technical training, the provision of basic infrastructure, as well as laboratory and R&D facilities. The Ministry also strengthens the capacity of competent authorities to assist entrepreneurs in meeting international standards and practices.

The Ministry has also implemented the Product Enhancement Programme, Input Material Improvement Programme, Storage System Programme, Certification Programme, as well as the Local and Export Market Facilitation Programme, as efforts to further increase entrepreneurs’ production capacity and operational scale. This includes strengthening the cold chain and logistics processes for export purposes.

These programmes are used to plan and implement facilitation activities for three categories of companies focused on under the agrifood industry, namely:

• Tier 1: Large Companies / Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) that have successfully penetrated export markets and are expanding their businesses into international markets;
• Tier 2: Small and Medium Companies/Enterprises (SMEs), comprising companies with the potential to prosper and subsequently expand the market for their products, not only in the domestic market but also in export markets in the near future; and
• Tier 3: Micro Enterprises/Home-based/Start-up businesses involving small-scale or home-based entrepreneurs with the potential to grow into enterprises based in more suitable areas, allowing for more organised production that complies with food industry standards.

All of this is important to enable potential entrepreneurs to transition from small-scale operations to enterprises that are more productive, more consistent and better prepared to expand, not only in the domestic market but also in international markets.

2. Increasing value addition and export readiness

The Ministry’s focus is not only on increasing primary production, but also on processing, branding, packaging, certification and compliance with standards. This is because, in order to penetrate regional markets, local products must not only be of high quality, but must also be capable of meeting market requirements, logistics requirements and the confidence of international consumers.

In addition, the Ministry has also implemented enhanced biosecurity at farms or aquaculture ponds, alongside the monitoring of food quality and safety through certifications such as Brunei Good Agricultural Practices (BGAP), Brunei Good Aquaculture Practices (BGAqP), Good Manufacturing Practices and HACCP, to ensure that products meet domestic and international food safety standards.

In terms of results and more tangible examples, the Ministry has also observed several achievements demonstrating that local entrepreneurs have the capability to expand into regional markets when provided with focused guidance. Among these, in 2025, the total export value of the food sector recorded approximately $13 million. For the agriculture and agrifood sectors, the export value stood at approximately $7.68 million, successfully penetrating markets in Singapore, Sabah and Sarawak, Malaysia, with commodities such as animal feed, chicken eggs and other agriculture-based products.