KUCHING: Sarawak has always welcomed international collaboration through developing its strategic conservation partnership with other countries, said Chief Minister Datuk Patinggi Tan Sri Adenan Satem.
He revealed these countries include Japan, Netherlands, Germany, Denmark, USA, Australia, New Zealand, India, China and countries in Asean and Middle East.
In addition, he said Sarawak promotes scientific collaboration with international bodies like International Tropical Timber Organisation (Itto), Food and Agriculture Organisation of the United Nationals (FAO), Danced/ Danida and many others.
“These collaborative efforts promote greater cooperation and sharing of scientific information, and Sarawak is also currently developing a spectral Mixed Dipterocarp Forest database for the state with various universities such as Salford University, Lincoln University and local universities,” he said in his special address at the ‘For Animals Conference 2015’ in Borneo Convention Centre Kuching yesterday.
His text of speech was read by Local Government and Community Development Minister Dato Sri Wong Soon Koh, who represented him to officiate at the event.
Adenan, who is also Minister of Resource Planning and Environment, further told the delegates that Sarawak’s need for socio-economic development did not jeopardise its conservation responsibilities.
He pointed out that laws and policies had been in place since the 1950s which had now been improved and enhanced, while the Wild Life Master Plan 1996 helped to formulate comprehensive wildlife strategy in managing and conserving wildlife in perpetuity.
The Wild Life Master Plan 1996 also enabled Sarawak to balance and integrate the conservation of wildlife and natural resources with the economic and development needs of the state, he added.
He explained the policy focussed on two key conservation strategies for Sarawak, namely protection of natural habitats by establishing totally protected areas (national parks, wild life sanctuaries and nature reserves) over an area of one million hectares by 2020 and protection of wildlife through strong enforcement of relevant legislations and protection of keystone species as totally protected species.
“As of March 2015, Sarawak has 54 totally protected areas covering 831,824 hectares of both land mass and water bodies,” said Adenan.
He also mentioned Sarawak had fared tremendously well in conserving the orang utan, and singled out Lanjak Entimau Wildlife Sanctuary and the adjacent Batang Ai National Park as providing the natural habitat and protection for about 1,600 wild orang utans to freely roam within these areas.
“An Orang Utan Strategic Action Plan has also been drawn up in collaboration with the Wildlife Conservation Society to provide a more holistic approach in the protection and management of this wild population of orang utans,” he said.
He also told the delegates that Sarawak has 2.1 million hectares of forests in the Heart of Borneo project areas – an initiative by Malaysia, Brunei and Indonesia where the orang utan, elephant, rhinoceros, clouded leopards and hornbills share the same territory.
Earlier, honorary curator of mammals in Sarawak Museum, Earl of Cranbook Dato Sri Dr Gathorne-Hardy, gave a talk on ‘The Long History of People and the Wild Mammals of Borneo: An Archaeological Perspective’.