Adenan shares a light moment with Princess Anne when he presents her with a ‘pua kumbu’ souvenir. — Bernama photo
KUCHING: Britain’s Princess Anne tonight commended the state leadership for its committed efforts in protecting the environment.
She said Sarawak had set a very good example, when speaking at a welcoming dinner in conjunction with the Emerging Leaders Dialogue Asia 2016 held here from today until tomorrow.
She said the dialogue being attended by 83 delegates from 20 countries would help spread news of the very good practices of Sarawak.
Chief Minister Adenan Satem and his wife Jamilah Anu, British High Commissioner to Malaysia Victoria Trendell and president of the Commonwealth Study Group Conference Association of Malaysia (COSCAM) Adrain Jerome were among those present.
The Princess Royal also thanked the state government for giving recognition and support to the dialogue that she said would benefit emerging leaders from the Commonwealth and other countries.
She said the dialogue was aimed at educating and globally connecting the leaders, as well as encouraging leadership for sustainable development.
In his speech earlier, Adenan said his leadership would continue to make protecting the state’s environment among its top priorities.
“We want to keep Sarawak’s natural beauty pristine. We will continue our fight against illegal logging.
“There will be no more new plantations. We will create more national parks to save the Orangutans,” he said.
Adenan also reminded the delegates to include protecting the environment in their dialogues.
“If you don’t protect the environment, the environment will not take care of you. In fact, it will mess things up. So let us be united in doing this,” he said.
Adenan said Sarawak admired Britain for its strong stance on protecting its environment with its laws and regulations, as well as enforcement. -Bernama