BELURAN: Sabah government is aiming to yield 15,000 tonnes of paddy annually from a revived Sapi terusan project in Beluran here.

State Agriculture and Food Industry Minister Datuk Junz Wong said that the project, which is in the first phase, covers an area of 1,600 hectares.

“The project has started and we are harvesting (paddy from about) 600 acres next week.

“We need to increase production yield by upgrading the worn out infrastructure and adjust certain design problems to smoothen inflow and outflow of water supplies to our paddy fields,” he said during the Chief Minister Datuk Seri Mohd Shafie Apdal’s site visit here on May 7.

Wong added that Sapi Canal is a pilot project and proved that the planting of paddy is doable.

Sabah’s rice self-sufficiency level stood at 25 per cent and the state is depending on imports from Vietnam and Thailand.

Other rice-growing project is in Kota Belud that costs nearly RM400 million, but has yet to produce any results.