Sabah to woke with UNDP for sustainable land use

Photo courtesy of Sabah Information department 

SOOK: The Sabah government is collaborating with the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) and the Global Environment Facility (GEF) to implement a major land management programme covering about 2.1 million hectares in the state.

Sabah Chief Minister Datuk Seri Hajiji Noor said the Food Systems, Land Use and Restoration Impact Programme (FOLUR IP) would focus on integrated landscape management to coordinate land use planning in Sabah while reducing the environmental impact of palm oil production.

He said the programme would also help preserve High Conservation Value Forest (HCVF) areas for environmental sustainability and development purposes.

“It will be implemented in 12 districts in Sabah and is expected to benefit about 56,000 rural residents,” he said when officiating the National-Level International Forest Day 2026 celebration at Dataran Sook here on Saturday.

Hajiji said the initiative reflects Sabah’s commitment to balancing socioeconomic development with environmental conservation under the Sabah Maju Jaya roadmap and SMJ 2.0 Development Plan.

Meanwhile, he said the state government is also drafting a Forest Master Plan that will guide Sabah’s forest resource management over the next 25 years.

“With the Forest Master Plan in place, the Sabah government will ensure that all Environmentally Sensitive Areas remain protected without neglecting socioeconomic development for the wellbeing of Sabahans,” he said.

Hajiji added that Sabah remained committed to maintaining 50 per cent forest cover under the Sabah Forest Policy 2018, noting that the state currently retains 63 per cent forest cover involving 3.85 million hectares gazetted as forest reserves and protected areas.

He said Sabah is also committed to maintaining 2.2 million hectares, or 30 per cent of the state’s total land area, as Totally Protected Areas to strengthen biodiversity conservation.

During the event, Hajiji, accompanied by Arthur Kurup, also presented 1,136 Native Title land grants involving 2,303.84 hectares for the Pensiangan parliamentary area.