THE Malaysian Palm Oil Green Conservation Foundation (MPOGCF), an agency under the Plantation and Commodities Ministry, has allocated RM1.2 million to finance a study on the orang utan population in Sabah for two years.

Ministry Secretary-General Mad Zaidi Mohd Karli@Sukari said: “The study will be carried out soon to obtain facts related to the protected species, which has become iconic in Sabah.”

He said this after officiating International orang utan Day, themed “Mereka Juga Warga Malaysia”, observed on August 19 every year, at Zoo Negara today.

Observing International orang utan Day is an effort funded by last year’s RM1.1 million sponsorship by the MPOGCF, which was to upgrade the orang utan exhibition at Zoo Negara.

“... We are not only giving priority to the palm oil industry, but also preserving the biodiversity of wildlife, including the orang utan.

“We want to counter claims by outsiders that the oil palm industry is an industry that threatens wildlife,” he said.

In his speech, Mad Zaidi said MPOGCF, which is under the Malaysian Palm Oil Council, calls on all Malaysians to support orang utan conservation efforts by prioritising sustainable palm oil products that are certified by Malaysian Sustainable Palm Oil.

“The biggest threat to the orang utan population is poaching, and the Borneo orang utan is categorised as critically endangered by the International Union for Conservation of Nature, with an estimated population of 104,700,” he said.

Mad Zaidi said a 2019 World Wildlife Fund (WWF) report, based on a survey of orang utan habitats between May 2014 and March 2017, found the orang utan population in Sabah had been stable for 15 years.

He said the WWF study showed the Malaysian oil palm industry, through MPOGCF, has activated conservation activities for the endangered animals.

“These include planting a million trees for the rehabilitation of orang utan habitats in a 2,500ha area in the Ulu Segama-Malua Forest Reserve in Lahad Datu.

Mad Zaidi said these efforts demonstrates the commitment of the country’s palm oil industry to increase the orang utan population, with the support of the government through the MPOGCF.

“The efforts show Malaysia’s oil palm industry, which is the main sector in the country’s agricommodity, with a trade value of RM268.1 billion in 2022, is being transformed into a sustainable one, friendly to the environment and wildlife, in addition to having the least impact on the natural ecosystem,” he said. – Bernama, August 19, 2023.