EXPLORING THE COVID-19 PANDEMIC IMPACTS ON MALAYSIAN RURAL SMALLHOLDER FARMERS IN KUCHING, SARAWAK

Received 2023-04-03; Accepted 2024-01-11; Published 2024-08-01

Authors

  • Whye Lian Cheah Department of Community Medicine and Public Health, Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences, Universiti Malaysia Sarawak, 94300 Kota Samarahan, Sarawak.
  • Su Bo Myat Department of Community Medicine and Public Health, Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences, Universiti Malaysia Sarawak, 94300 Kota Samarahan, Sarawak.
  • Angel, Yi Wen Wong Department of Community Medicine and Public Health, Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences, Universiti Malaysia Sarawak, 94300 Kota Samarahan, Sarawak.
  • Nur Fatini Amni Mohd Fauzi Department of Community Medicine and Public Health, Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences, Universiti Malaysia Sarawak, 94300 Kota Samarahan, Sarawak.
  • Mohammad Shahrulnizam Hatity Department of Community Medicine and Public Health, Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences, Universiti Malaysia Sarawak, 94300 Kota Samarahan, Sarawak.
  • Azyan Hannany Aseri Department of Community Medicine and Public Health, Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences, Universiti Malaysia Sarawak, 94300 Kota Samarahan, Sarawak.
  • Zhi Sheng Yeo Department of Community Medicine and Public Health, Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences, Universiti Malaysia Sarawak, 94300 Kota Samarahan, Sarawak.

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.22452/jummec.vol27no2.10

Keywords:

Smallholder farmers, Challenges, Respond, Recovery, Strategies

Abstract

The current study aims to explore the Coronovirus 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic impacts on Malaysian rural smallholder farmers in Kuching, Sarawak. Purposive sampling was employed and a qualitative descriptive approach was adopted. This study centred on a group of rural smallholder farmers actively participating in a food assistance programme for impoverished urban communities in Kuching. The farmers played a pivotal role in supplying vegetables and crops for the food assistance programme. The data were collected through semi-structured individual in-depth interviews. A thematic analysis was conducted, which revealed several major themes, namely the challenges encountered by smallholder farmers during the pandemic, the responses to the crisis, the recovery strategies, and subsequent plans. The current study not only enriched the understanding of the challenges encountered by rural smallholder farmers but also determined the underlying issues. The insights could serve as a foundation for developing specific solutions by relevant authorities to address rural smallholder farmers’ respective needs.

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Published

2024-08-01

Issue

Vol. 27 No. 2 (2024)

Section

Research article

License

All authors agree that the article, if editorially accepted for publication, shall be licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution License 4.0 to allow others to freely access, copy and use research provided the author is correctly attributed, unless otherwise stated. All articles are available online without charge or other barriers to access. However, anyone wishing to reproduce large quantities of an article (250+) should inform the publisher. Any opinion expressed in the articles are those of the authors and do not reflect that of the University of Malaya, 50603 Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.