A game changer? Coffee farmers in Malaysia hope to plant the seeds of tourism in a remote corner of Sarawak, Borneo
- Indigenous farmers in northeast Sarawak have begun growing coffee and, with the help of a coffee shop owner, hope to sell their beans on international markets
- The area already attracts adventurous tourists for jungle treks and boat trips, and villagers hope the coffee project will give visitors another reason to stay
Borneo’s scorching midday sun bakes the mud under my shoes as I follow a group of excited Malaysian farmers towards the fields that, they believe, could help develop tourism in a remote part of Sarawak.
“Here we are.” Bespectacled farmer Tomy Pangot adjusts his straw hat before pointing at a clearing where rows of plants sway in the breeze.
With barely concealed pride, Pangot chaperones us around the neat rows of his liberica coffee plants.
Plump, red cherries cause the branches to bend slightly under their weight – a cargo of hope for Pangot and the people of Long Banga, an outpost in the southern reaches of Ulu Baram, a region in the northeast of Sarawak on the island of Borneo.
“Back in the day, it took us four days on foot to reach school in Bario,” the penghulu (regional head) of Punang Kelapang, Robin Udau, told me, as we shared the welcome dinner offered by another elder for our arrival.
