By Olivia Miwil
KOTA KINABALU: Sabah government will continue to intensify efforts in forest conservation and protection, strengthen forest and climate governance, as well as promote community development and green innovation.
Sabah Yang diPertua Negeri Tun Musa Aman said initiatives include the adoption of Other Effective Area-Based Conservation Measures (OECM) to support the Totally Protected Areas (TPA) target, the implementation of the Sabah Timber Legality Assurance System Plus, and the use of satellite technology and Earth Observation systems.
"In addition, the Forest Landscape Restoration (FLR) approach will be carried out, covering agricultural land, production forests and community areas, aimed at restoring ecological functions while enhancing the social and economic well-being of local communities.
"From a carbon governance perspective, the State Government aspires to become a leader in implementing Article 6 of the Paris Agreement in Malaysia by leveraging opportunities in the voluntary carbon market as a new source of financing to support forest and environmental conservation efforts," he said when delivering the state government policy speech for the first sitting of the 17th Sabah State Legislative Assembly here.
In environmental management, Musa said Sabah is set to receive powers under the Malaysian Agreement 1963 related to environmental management, beginning with scheduled waste management.
"The transfer of authority is expected to be fully implemented by November this year. This transition will be supported through the drafting of new laws and guidelines, the development of web-based management systems, and technical competency enhancement programmes for officers and industry players."
Under the 13th Malaysia Plan, the Federal Government will strengthen the Blue Economy as a key strategy to enhance national economic competitiveness and sustainability.
Musa said Sabah has been selected as the National Blue Economy Hub due to its vast marine resource potential, making it a strategic location for implementing this initiative.
"At the state level, the Sabah government has outlined the Sabah Blue Economy Direction based on five key components: harvesting of living resources; extraction of non-living resources and generation of new resources; trade and commerce in and around the ocean; response to marine health challenges; and river systems.
"The Sabah Blue Economy Council (MEBS) has been established to coordinate and implement the state's blue economy strategic policies.
"A study and master plan for a Blue Economy Industrial Park in Kudat is currently underway to develop a structured and sustainable industrial park based on blue economy principles.
"In addition, the state government is planning to implement a Marine Spatial Planning policy to identify potential blue economy industries in Sabah."
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