KOTA KINABALU: About eight years ago, villagers in Kampung Gana Kota Marudu were introduced to a self-sustaining community project that was also aimed at improving their livelihood.

       Little did they know that European Union-funded Sabah-EU REDD+ Project could potentially have an impact on Sabah’s food security, especially following last year’s pandemic.

       REDD+ is an international framework that stands for “Reducing Emissions from Deforestation and Forest Degradation”, while the plus sign denotes conservation of existing forest carbon stocks, sustainable forest management, and enhancement of forest carbon stocks.

       Through the project, the community – which previously had to depend on forest resources to sustain a living – has built the capacity to develop their land into profitable ventures.

       Unlike other more commercial agricultural investments, theirs is small scale, community-based and arguably organic.

       “Villagers have planted pineapples, coffee, organic vegetables and hill rice,” said project manager Alexander Minsong, who himself hails from the village.

       “Some of them have grown yam and mushrooms,” he said, adding that these can fetch a good price in the market and in turn, yield a better income for the villagers.

       He believes in time, if the community continues to master the art of business, their small ventures could potentially grow to become a lot bigger.

       Minsong said some situations might offer a push for the previously forest-dwelling community to build self-belief and resilience, with one significant scenario being the Covid-19 pandemic.

       “The importance of sustainable food resources and an undisrupted supply chain to consumers has been one of the key lessons learned since the global pandemic hit Sabah,” he added.

       The project, started in 2013 and set to end by Nov 30 this year, also contributed to solving a major issue: a clean water supply for folks in Kampung Gana, which comprises 10 sub-villages.

       While the solution is simple – with three gravity water systems built to meet the daily needs of villagers to sustain the project – one activity around this has led to a more meaningful impact.

       Villager Malinana Japin said they planted trees inside the forest for this purpose, so that the trees would ensure that the water catchment stays resilient and healthy for generations to come.

       The project has helped establish community cooperatives and carried out forest restoration initiatives.

       One of the earliest project participants, Aendialiana Enam, recalls how the project managers held members of the community’s hands almost every step of the way to ensure they started on the right footing.

       Planting materials, seedlings and training (including marketing) were provided, she said.

       Project participants expressed how their lives have changed since they joined and learnt new things.

       “It gives me a sense of accomplishment whenever I can make some earnings from the sale of crops I planted. It doesn’t matter if it’s RM5 or RM100,” said Malinana.

       Now that the Kampung Gana community has developed a greater sense of self-confidence and purpose from the small results they have attained, they are determined to go further and bigger.

       They are also looking forward to welcoming a team of professionals from Universiti Malaysia Sabah to teach them how to grow mushrooms.

       During the eight-year term, the project team worked with communities living adjacent to forest reserves in three areas: four villages in the Kinabatangan River Corridor, 10 villages in Kampung Gana in Kota Marudu, and seven villages within the Kinabalu Ecolinc Zone.