Malaysia: Kota Kinabalu Wetlands to get Ramsar site status

RUBEN SARIO The Star 27 Feb 16;

KOTA KINABALU: A mangrove area here, one of only two wetlands in the world located within a city, is due to get an international recognition by mid 2016.

The Kota Kinabalu Wetlands is expected to be accorded the Ramsar site status in about three to four months, Natural Resources and Environment Minister Datuk Seri Dr Wan Junaidi Tuanku Jaafar said.

He said the ministry was in the final stages of getting the 24ha conservation area at Likas listed as the country’s seventh Ramsar site.

(Since 2013, the Sabah government had approved a bid for the Kota Kinabalu Wetlands to be listed as a Ramsar site - wetlands deemed important for their economic, cultural, scientific, and recreational values based on the Ramsar Convention.)

Wan Junaidi said the Kota Kinabalu Wetlands was unique as it is the only one in the world apart from the one in Tokyo that was located within city limits.

“I am amazed that the mangrove is just 15 minute's drive from the downtown area,” he said after launching the World Wetlands Day celebrations at the Kota Kinabalu Wetlands on Saturday.

The other Ramsar sites in the country are located in Tasek Bera in Pahang, Tanjung Piai, Pulau Kukup and Sungai Pulai in Johor, the Kuching Wetland National Park in Sarawak and the Lower Kinabatangan-Segama Wetlands in Sabah.

Due to the area’s importance, Wan Junaidi said his ministry would provide RM750,000 for development and repairs of facilities at the Kota Kinabalu Wetlands in addition to the RM500,000 funding from the Sabah government.


Govt to declare Kota Kinabalu Wetlands as country's 7th Ramsar site
BERNAMA New Straits Times 27 Feb 16;

KOTA KINABALU: The government will declare Kota Kinabalu Wetlands that is located in the heart of the city centre as the country's seventh Ramsar Site.

Natural Resources and Environment Minister Datuk Seri Dr Wan Junaidi Tuanku Jaafar said his ministry was now looking into the matter before the 24-hectare mangrove forest conservation area be accorded the Ramsar site status.

"The Kota Kinabalu Wetlands meets all the criteria to be listed as the Ramsar Site.

God willing, in the near future, the government will declare this area as the country's seventh Ramsar site.

Maybe in the next three to four months," he said. He said this to reporters after officiating the national-level World Wetlands Day 2016 and the 'A Guide to the Plants of Kota Kinabalu Wetlands' book launch, here today.

Present were Sabah Tourism, Culture and Environment Minister Datuk Seri Masidi Manjun and Sabah Wetlands Conservation Society (SWCS) president Datuk Zainie Abd Aucasa.

Wan Junaidi said the other Ramsar sites in the country are located at Tasek Bera in Pahang; Tanjung Piai, Pulau Kukup and Sungai Pulai in Johor; Kuching Wetland National Park, Sarawak; and Lower Kinabatangan-Segama Wetlands, Sabah.

In the meantime, Wan Junaidi urged all state governments to preserve and conserve their mangrove swamps, as the area was the habitat and breeding ground for various marine life.

At the event, Wan Junaidi also announced an allocation of RM750,000 to SWCS for the purpose of conservation activities in the Kota Kinabalu Wetlands.

The Sabah state government also contributed RM500,000 to SWCS. --Bernama