29/09/05 KUCHING, (Bernama) -- The Iban community in Aping, Pantu, SriAman Division, about 120 kilometres from Kuching, has launched asmallholder oil palm scheme as a community-based effort on their nativecustomary rights (NCR) land.

"This is on their own initiative to improve their own economic livelihoodin response to the government's policy to develop NCR land either byteaming up with investors or on their own efforts," the spokesman for sixIban longhouses in Pantu, Jacob Emang, a retired senior governmentofficer, told Bernama Thursday.

He said about 300 hectares have already been surveyed, cleared, demarcatedand planted with oil palm involving 37 families.

It is envisaged that eventually 200 families will be involved covering anarea that could extend to 5,000 hectares, he added.

Emang, a New Zealand university graduate in education and English whoserved in the Education Department before his retirement, is also chairmanof the village working committee for security and development (oil palm)covering scheme participants from the six longhouses -- Kampung Tekuyong,Kampung Aping (Dadak), Kampung Aping (Pulau Batu), Aping Uban and andKampung Abok.

He said the villagers wanted to make a success of the project to show whatthey could on their own initiative to develop their NCR land intosomething productive and improve their own economic livelihood.

"So far we have been doing it without help from anyone," he said,describing the project as based on the concept of "everybody is involved,everybody decides and everybody contributes with finance, labour and otherforms".

The state government through the Land Custody and Development Authority(LCDA) has also started a 7,000-hectare oil palm plantation in the areadescribed as Sungai Mansau/Sungai Tenggoh Block in a joint venture with aJohor investor group.

The joint venture company, Tertangga Akrap Pelita Pantu Sdn Bhd, isunderstood to have planted about 1,000 acres to date.

-- BERNAMA