Sabah Achieves 2.2 million hectares of Protected Forests

Sabah is further expanding its Totally Protected Areas (TPA) by 216,000 hectares of new forest reserves and State Land, adding to the existing TPA of 2.2 million hectares, or about 30.06 per cent of the state’s total land area, the state with the largest TPA in Malaysia. Chief Minister Datuk Seri Panglima Haji Hajiji Haji Noor said that Sabah will continue its efforts to gazette several more protected areas in the coming years.

“We are pursuing the highest standards in the state’s conservation efforts through the Sabah Forest Policy 2018,” Hajiji said at the Sabah Forestry Department Excellent Service Awards ceremony on 13 February 2026 in Kota Kinabalu. Awards in several categories were presented to recipients including excellence service quality; and excellence in research; asset management; financial; forest recreation; project management; and forest innovation.

“Sabah is seen positively in the global conservation efforts for the significant size of its protected areas, and for the continuous efforts to achieve the policy targets that have been set,” Hajiji said. “Our Sabah Forest Department has done well to manage our forests with a clear environmental sustainability mandate, prioritising them as sources of biodiversity, climate stabilisers and livelihood, and building partnership in communities.

Commercially, we have managed the forest with transparency, with RM161 million revenue collected in 2025, RM92 million or 57 per cent from the amount was from timber royalties.” Sabah Forest Department (SFD) has continuously organised various successful roadshows, seminars, scientific expeditions and outreach programmes, and international conferences, such as the Heart of Borneo (HoB), Hajiji added.

SFD has received many awards and recognitions for its efforts. The Sabah State Public Service Department has awarded Best Human Resource Management 2025 to SFD for excellence in management systems. The State Government recognised SFD with the Best Record Management certificate 2025. The European Union has given recognition (2026) to SFD for its commitment to sustainable forest management and the implementation of the Sabah Timber Legality Assurance System Plus (TLAS+). Dr Arthur Y. C. Chung of SFD received the 2023 Science and Technology Award – given by the Malaysia Toray Science Foundation (MTSF) - for his outstanding contributions to tropical forest entomology / insect diversity and forest insect pest management. The Malaysia Timber Industry Board (MTIB) awarded Jawala Plantation Industries Sdn Bhd for the Best Model Forest Plantation Award in 2023 (SFD worked with Jawala Plantation Industries S/B to operate its Sustainable Forest Management License Agreement (SFMLA) projects within the Sapulut Forest Reserve in Sabah).

Datuk Joniston Bangkuai, Assistant Minister to the Chief Minister, delivered the CM’s speech at the Sabah International Conference Centre (SICC).