Period poverty refers to women and girls not having adequate access to education about menstruation and sanitary pads, clean water, pain medications, and sanitary products during their period (menstrual cycle). Despite the lack of appropriate data on period poverty in Malaysia to identify the extent of period poverty, the issue is prevalent among rural dwellers. […]
Sondang Erika, 27, is a mother of two. Together with her husband, Ayen, the couple are farmers with OA Organik in Kampung OA Melai, Pahang. Sondang worked as a small-scale rubber tapper before becoming a full-time farmer, and at one point, both husband and wife worked as security guards in an oil palm plantation. After […]
Zariu and Nor, husband-wife team, have been with the OA Organik farm at Kg Ulu Gumum right from the beginning – December 2015. They are the new generation of Orang Asli with determination and vision to take on the challenges of globalisation and the market economy. In February 2020, Zariu and Nor invested a huge […]
The Orang Asli are the natural guardians of the forest. They have a beautiful culture of partnership between people and the forest, nurturing and protecting the forest, and taking from it only what they need daily. But modernisation – irresponsible logging and the imposition of the market economy – has threatened the Orang Asli’s livelihoods, […]
Two indicators of genuine transformation are ownership and self-development. We see these, not just in the Orang Asli farmers at Kg Ulu Gumum where the OA Organics eco-farm project is, but a group of Orang Asli at Kg Melai. At Kg Ulu Gumum, there are now 32 farmers! The success of the 2-acre land started […]
The Orang Asli farmers of Kg Ulu Gumum will be showcased in an exhibition in New York! The eco-farm has been selected to represent Asia at the United Nations Permanent Forum for Indigenous Issues (22 April – 3 May 2019). The Forum, established in 2000, is mandated to deal with indigenous issues related to the […]
Behind the OA Organics farm produce you see at three Jaya Grocer outlets, two Ps continue to enhance this process of building sustainable livelihoods for the farmers: Planet-friendly and People-centred. Planet Friendly To protect the environment, the young Orang Asli are being educated to stay connected to the forest. Two Sundays ago, a group […]
In the last few months, we witness the development of new mini farms in Kg Ulu Gumum! Being inspired by the success of the OA Organic farmers, a few orang asli in the village took the initiative to develop their own farms, using their own resources. Zariu and Burn, our farmers, have been coaching these wannabe […]
Let’s get to know one of our farmers, Manan, a hardworking and progressive man in his early 30s. His life-story is typical of the plights of many orang asli who want to provide a better future for their family. Prior to joining the OA Organics farm in August 2017, Manan worked for an owner of […]
It was a month of expansion! It all started in mid-July when we had a good problem: the farmers were producing a surplus of 30kg per harvest but the Kuantan market could not absorb the increase in production. Jaya Grocer, who has adopted OA Oganics as their CSR project, stepped in; they offered to sell the vegetables at […]