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New Straits Times
7 days ago
- New Straits Times
Sarawak nominates two national parks as Asean Heritage Parks
KUCHING: The state government has nominated Bako National Park in the Kuching Division and Bukit Lambir National Park in the Miri Division as Asean Heritage Parks (AHP), said Deputy Premier Datuk Awang Tengah Ali Hasan today. He said the Asean Centre for Biodiversity has conducted assessments on both parks. "The results of the assessments are expected to be announced by September this year," Awang Tengah, who is also the state Urban Development and Natural Resources Minister, said in his winding-up speech at the State Legislative Assembly today. He added that the nomination of these two national parks followed the successful inscription of Niah National Park as a UNESCO World Heritage Site last year. Awang Tengah also said the state government is committed to obtaining UNESCO Global Geopark Site recognition for Sarawak Delta Geopark in 2026. "We are in the final stages of preparation for the UNESCO assessment scheduled for June 22 to 25 this year," he said, adding that this is to ensure all preparations run smoothly. Awang Tengah also informed the state assembly that the Sarawak government has gazetted 2.1 million hectares of totally protected areas (TPA), comprising 874,000 hectares of land and 1.2 million hectares of marine waters. He added that an additional 318,000 hectares of land has been approved for preliminary gazettement. He said Sarawak Forestry Corporation (SFC), in strengthening forest conservation efforts, has signed Memorandums of Understanding (MoUs) with the Sarawak Infectious Disease Centre (SIDC) for zoonotic disease studies, the Sarawak Biodiversity Centre (SBC) for biodiversity technical cooperation, and the University of Malaya for genetic research. He added that SFC is also collaborating with King Mongkut's University of Technology Thonburi, Thailand, on the conservation of migratory shorebirds. "For the first quarter of 2025, the migratory shorebird tagging programme was implemented at the Bako-Buntal Bay East Asian–Australasian Flyway site," he said.
The Star
7 days ago
- The Star
Outcome of Sarawak's Asean Heritage Park nominations to be known in September
Deputy Premier Datuk Amar Awang Tengah Ali Hasan delivering his winding-up speech at the Sarawak Legislative Assembly on Wednesday (May 28). KUCHING: Sarawak has nominated the Bako and Bukit Lambir national parks as Asean Heritage Parks, with the outcome expected to be announced soon, says Deputy Premier Datuk Amar Awang Tengah Ali Hasan. He said this came after the Niah National Park was successfully inscribed as a Unesco World Heritage Site last year. "The Asean Centre for Biodiversity (ACB) has carried out its assessment and the decision is expected to be known in September," he said in his winding-up speech at the Sarawak Legislative Assembly on Wednesday (May 28). According to the ACB website, Asean Heritage Parks are protected areas of high conservation importance, preserving a complete spectrum of representative ecosystems of the Asean region. These areas are established to generate greater awareness, pride, appreciation and conservation of Asean's rich natural heritage and promote greater collaboration among member nations in preserving their natural heritage. Located about 37km from Kuching, Bako National Park is home to a wide range of wildlife and vegetation, including the proboscis monkey. Bukit Lambir National Park near Miri is an ecologically diverse area with numerous plant and insect species as well as the totally protected gibbon, tarsier and clouded leopard. Awang Tengah also said the state is aiming to gain recognition for the Sarawak Delta Geopark as a Unesco Global Geopark Site by next year. "We are now in the final stages of preparing for assessment by Unesco, which is scheduled to take place on June 22-25. "To ensure smooth preparations, two pre-assessment sessions were held in April and May," he said.
