In the heart of Kuala Terengganu lies a tiny greenhouse that is home to ‘Melon Manis Terengganu’, the sweet melon. The greenhouse shelters three rows of plants, each bearing a melon, although they are still too young to be picked at the moment. The proud planters can be seen touching the plants with their fingers, checking the progress of their labour. This is the story of strong-willed individuals who persevered despite their lack of ability to see.
“When people talk about visually impaired individuals, the stereotype is that we could only sell tissues or provide massage services,” remarked Muhammad Imran Faisal Zulkifli, chairman of the Society of the Blind (SBM) in the Terengganu branch. And Imran is classified to be totally blind.
Job opportunities for visually impaired individuals are scarce. Aside from selling tissues or working as masseurs, many resort to running small-scale businesses or teaching braille reading. The Blind Planters programme aims to create new opportunities.
“The Blind Planters programme offers visually impaired individuals the chance to learn how to cultivate sweet Terengganu melons as a means of livelihood,” explained Imran. “Our vision may be limited, as are our movements, but with this programme, we can achieve more.”
Ten visually impaired individuals from Terengganu enrolled in the Blind Planters programme. Braille modules are used to facilitate their understanding of the activities. Receiving support from the Hasanah Special Grant (HSG) by Yayasan Hasanah in collaboration with the Ministry of Finance Malaysia, SBM also collaborated with Dr. Wan Zaliha Wan Sembok, an expert in postharvest physiology, to impart her knowledge on planting sweet Terengganu melons. This equips participants to continue planting at home to support their livelihood.
The unique programme conveys how essential it is that the solution considers the multidimensional challenges faced by B40 communities. Siti Noradilah Sabudin, Senior Manager at Yayasan Hasanah, shared, “It’s our priority to ensure that our partners approach community transformation by considering the backgrounds of the participants because each of them faces unique challenges.”
And despite the challenges, the participants were eager to learn regardless.
Rahimah Muda, a single mother and retired teacher from Sabah, was one such participant. “Gardening is my hobby, and when introduced to this project, I was keen to learn how to garden systematically,” said Rahimah. Apart from gardening, Rahimah was also interested in starting her own business and learning how to market the fruits.
Rahimah’s vision falls under the B2 category where her visions are limited. She could see large objects, but she could not read. For some of the other participants, they suffer from either B1, which is total blindness, or B3, partial eyesight.
Her limited vision does not prevent her from pursuing her interests. Rahimah expressed jubilantly, “Opportunities like this do not come easy, so I’m grateful to be part of it. My colleagues and I will do our best to make this a successful programme to benefit our families, and especially the visually impaired individuals in Terengganu.” She added, “I’d like to imagine that the greenhouse will be bigger in a few years, and we’ll have more people participating in the programme.”
For the first batch of the blind planters, the programme’s efforts had borne fruit as the participants have upskilled themselves. Delighted with the progress, Imran shared, “From zero knowledge to now, I’d say the participants have about 80% of the knowledge shared. We anticipate they can earn about RM 500 monthly once the programme concludes.”
In the first harvest, the participants harvested a collective total of 150 kg of the melons. To date, the second harvest produced 237 kg.
This initiative not only challenges the stigma surrounding blindness but also broadens the horizons of career options for the visually impaired. I hope this programme continues and welcomes more participants,” said Imran. “I wish for this program to expand, allowing our participants to yield more fruits and potentially, in the future, serve the international market,” he concluded.