Harvest Festival to include all communities, add planting initiative

Borneo Post

06-05-2025

Jeffrey (right) during the radio and TV program recording.
KOTA KINABALU (May 6): The Harvest Festival (Pesta Kaamatan) celebration is being expanded beyond the Kadazan Dusun Murut (KDMR) community to include all members of society, regardless of background, so that everyone can celebrate together.
Deputy Chief Minister I Datuk Seri Panglima Dr Jeffrey G. Kitingan, who is also the chairman of the Sabah State-Level 2025 Harvest Festival Celebration Main Committee, said this year's festival will open opportunities for all groups in line with this year's theme, 'Kaamatan For All.'
He mentioned that apart from the Sugandoi and Unduk Ngadau competitions, various other contests will be held, such as cooking, service-based and handicraft competitions.
'Interestingly, this year's Harvest Festival will not only be a harvest celebration but also a planting festival, where seven types of increasingly rare herbal plants will be cultivated during the event. This initiative is part of efforts to prevent valuable and precious herbal species from going extinct.
'Aside from cultural performances, this year's Harvest Festival will also serve as a platform for dialogue, featuring an Intercultural Dialogue program that will discuss local culture in relation to foreign countries.
'This dialogue will explore how we can celebrate together and understand cultures other than our own. So far, we have held dialogues with Indonesia, Korea, and our neighbor, the Philippines,' he said.
Jeffrey, who is also the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food Industry, spoke to the media after recording a program with RTM Sabah at the Integrated Complex of the Ministry of Communication, following his chairmanship of the Sabah State-Level Harvest Festival Celebration Main Committee meeting at the same venue on Monday.