WWF-Malaysia applauds Sabah's commitment in conservation efforts

 By Olivia Miwil - November 18, 2020 @ 11:39am

Divers at Coral garden dive site during End in Sipadan programme. - PHOTO COURTESY OF TOURISM AND CULTURE MINISTRY.

KOTA KINABALU: The World Wide Fund for Nature-Malaysia (WWF-Malaysia) has applauded the state government's commitment in conservation efforts.

Its head of conservation Sabah Dr Robecca Jumin was referring to Yang di-Pertua Negeri Tun Juhar Mahiruddin's policy speech at the 16th state assembly sitting last week that the state government will continue to focus and take initiatives to protect, preserve and conserve nature.

It includes to achieve 30 per cent Totally Protected Areas (TPA) by 2025 and to expand the marine sanctuary to 13 per cent by 2023.

To date, Sabah has achieved 1.9 million hectares of its forest area or 26 per cent of the TPA, making Sabah the State with the largest TPA in Malaysia, with 48 per cent healthy non-degraded forest cover.

"On behalf of WWF-Malaysia, we would like to applaud the State government's commitment to prioritise environmental protection.

"We also urge the State government to ensure that 50 per cent of Sabah's land area is always under forest cover and sufficient to provide ecosystem services such as watershed areas and habitats for flora and fauna, in line with State and national policies," she said in a statement.

As for the efforts on reviving the tourism sector in the state, Robecca said WWF-Malaysia also called for a holistic recovery approach that preserves the beauty and richness of flora and fauna as well as the wonders of nature in Sabah.

She added the State government should also continue to work towards development in a sustainable way to balance economic aspirations without compromising Sabah's natural capital such as environmental assets, social systems, and cultural resources.

"This is in line with the Sustainable Development Goals (SDG) and Malaysia's climate change and biodiversity policies.

"Sustainable development should be a goal that ensures a win-win in the environmental, social and economic aspects of Sabah.

"The threats of flash floods, air pollution, landslides, water supply shortage, and forest fires would increase without adequate protection of nature," she said, adding such phenomena are real and the frequency and severity will intensify due to the pressures of rising populations and climate change.

Robecca added that the new administration helmed by Sabah Chief Minister Datuk Seri Hajiji Noor inherits the responsibility of protecting Sabah's rich biodiversity, an important asset to ensure Sabah and the nation bounces back better to a green and just recovery from the Covid-19 health and economic impacts.

"Ultimately, it is important that the new Sabah government practices a more inclusive and consultative process when making policies and decisions to ensure the best solutions for both people and the environment.

"We hope to continue working together with the State government to help achieve these goals."