KUALA LUMPUR (Nov 19): The Government has not mooted any proposal to merge the Federal Land Development Authority (Felda) and Federal Land Consolidation and Rehabilitation Authority (Felcra).

This was confirmed by Economic Affairs Minister Datuk Seri Azmin Ali on the sidelines of the Parliament session today.

“All efforts to fix Felda, specifically financial management and management of its plantations will be based on a white paper which we will present [in Parliament].

“We will obtain all the detailed information, then we will take the necessary actions to repair Felda. There is no plan to merge Felda with Felcra,” said Azmin.

The Government is expected to table the white paper in the current Dewan Rakyat sitting.

According to Felcra’s official website, the agency’s mandate is to realise the development programme for Malaysia’s rural community on behalf of both the State and Federal governments.

Felda’s role, on the other hand, is to develop lands and facilitate relocation of the rakyat with the objective to eradicate poverty through plantation programmes. Its current mandate is to provide adequate facilities for Felda settlers and to ensure Felda sites will continue to generate economic activites to narrow the economic gap between the cities and the townships.