For illustration purposes only. Selangor Infrastructure and Agriculture Committee chairman Datuk Izham Hashim urged local authorities to identify vacant land for possible use in urban farming projects. — Picture by KE Ooi First Published: Monday, 10 Aug 2026 3:01 PM MYT SHAH ALAM, Aug 10 — Local authorities in Selangor have been urged to identify vacant plots of land to prevent them from falling into neglect or being occupied by unauthorised parties, including foreign nationals.State Infrastructure and Agriculture Committee chairman Datuk Izham Hashim said applications could be made to lease the identified land for urban farming activities, including community gardens and programmes carried out by the private sector.He said the move would enable vacant urban land to be managed more systematically while optimising its use for high-value agricultural activities.“The state government has directed local government authorities (PBT) to identify idle land and apply for leases so that the sites can be utilised for community gardens, agricultural programmes or by interested private parties.“This includes making the land available to PKPS (Selangor Agricultural Development Corporation) for agricultural programmes, ensuring that the land is used in a more organised and systematic manner,” he told the State Legislative Assembly sitting here today.Izham was responding to a supplementary question from Muhamad Izuan Ahmad Kasim (PH-Kota Damansara) on a proposal to use idle land for urban agriculture as a measure to prevent such areas from being occupied by foreign nationals.He said the Petaling Jaya City Council was among the local authorities that had implemented the initiative in stages.Meanwhile, Izham said the Urban Agriculture Programme (Community Gardens) continued to receive encouraging responses, with the number of projects increasing from 39 involving 390 participants in 2024 to 66 projects involving 990 participants in 2025.He added that agricultural produce from the programme increased from 33.6 tonnes to 49.9 tonnes during the same period, while more than 200 community garden sites had been established within local authority areas.He said the development not only encouraged greater community participation in urban agriculture but also helped increase food production at the community level and strengthen Selangor’s food security agenda. — Bernama