RANAU: The State Tourism, Culture and Environment Ministry (Kepkas) on Thursday announced the establishment of a Sustainability and Capacity Development Centre after receiving approval from the board of trustees of Sabah Parks.
Its Minister Datuk Christina Liew said the centre was established to improve the knowledge, skills and capacity of stakeholders and local communities around Sabah Parks.
“It is also able to provide socio-economic benefits from the aspect of protection and conservation of park areas, especially around areas recognised as United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation (Unesco) sites,” she said.
She said this at the launch of the “Sustainable Development Goals: The Way Forward, Issues, Challenges and Prospect of Sustainability Development – Climate Change and Renewal Energy” course, here.
The 11-day course started on Thursday with more than 25 participants from the Sabah Biodiversity Centre, Sabah Tourism Board, Sabah Forestry Department, Sabah State Forestry Development Board, Sabah Irrigation and Drainage Department, Kota Kinabalu City Hall and the District Offices of Ranau, Tuaran, Papar, Penampang and Sabah Parks.
Liew said Thursday’s programme is part of the establishment of the centre and that, from now on, all such programmes will be handled by the Centre for Sustainability and Capacity Development.
“Most (programmes) will be related to the sustainability element of natural resource management for the socio-economic interests of the local community,” she said.
She said Kepkas is committed to advancing the sustainable development of tourism in Sabah as the State Government’s third pillar of the economy, which aims for continuous development that will benefit the people.
“Our priority is to maintain a sustainable balance between the main draw of the three pillars, which are agriculture, industry and tourism,” she said.
