PWD Smart Farmability is a social enterprise recognized by the Malaysian Global Innovation & Creativity Centre (MaGIC). Our purpose of existence is to empower Malaysia’s disabled community (OKU) through urban farming – by making nutritious food and meaningful jobs available to them. Our ultimate goal is to help the disabled community acquire sought-after skills that will allow them to become part of the workforce, or as entrepreneurs. Through our efforts, we hope that the disabled community may inherit the knowledge and entrepreneurship skills to become self-sustainable and contribute to society with dignity.
Dr. Billy Tang Chee Seng is an agriculturist by profession and a private researcher for over two decades. His involvement in agriculture & agro-based industries has instilled in him the passion for sustainable farming and environmentally sustainable businesses.
In December 2015, he was involved in a car accident that left him with six broken ribs and a transected spinal cord, robbing away his ability to walk. During his first six months in recovery, he faced severe depression – but with the unconditional love and support from his family and friends, he has finally come to terms with himself as a permanently disabled person.
PERKESO, the Malacca Rehab team, and the Sungai Buloh Rehab team played a major role in restoring Dr. Billy Tang’s confidence in his new life, with special thanks to Dr. Hafez Hussain, Dr. Ong Kuo Ghee, and Dr. Akmal Hafizah.
Today, he is known as Malaysia’s paraplegic farmer who was also the face of Aqua Hope – a commercial aquaponics farm that deploys proprietary soilless agriculture technology. Through this project, he truly believes that people with disabilities (OKU) can champion urban smart farms, contributing to food purity, food security, and food sovereignty in our nation through an environmentally sustainable and local economy.
Dr. Billy Tang was chosen as one of the most successful examples for People With Disabilities (PWD) / Orang Kurang Upaya (OKU) at the Selangor OKU Career Carnival which took place on 24th November 2018. He was also the national icon, representative, and conference speaker of the National Symposium Rehabilitation Perspectives in Spinal Chord Injury held on 01 April 2019. On 21 November 2019, Dr. Billy Tang was invited to represent urban farmers at The Agricultural Transformation and Inclusive Growth, organized by the World Bank Group and Malaysia’s Ministry of Economic Affairs.
Earlier in January 2020, Dr. Billy Tang was also appointed by the Ministry of Economic Affairs to become the official representative for agriculture focus, to contribute his views on urban farming in Malaysia which will be documented in the 12th RMKe (Rancangan Malaysia Kedua Belas), which was the first phase execution for Wawasan Kemakmuran Bersama 2030.
He now wish to represent 4.2 million people with disabilities in Malaysia, registered and unregistered, to champion our powerful cause. Through agriculture transformation during the post COVID-19 new normal, we are working towards empowering even the B40 groups who have lost all source of their income due to the pandemic.
Please do stay tuned as we will continue to share more of our journey with you through our journey since 2018.
If you would like to know more about us, feel free to visit our official website at: PWD Smart Farmability
Originally posted on PWD Smart Farmability. Hive blog powered by ENGRAVE.
