Protect Coral Reefs in Malaysia

The youths from the islands of Kulapuan, Larapan and Mabul in Malaysia are no strangers to reef conservation activities that have begun in their islands since early 2023. Late last year, our colleagues in Sabah organised an advanced open water (AOW) course and rescue diver course for 8 youths from these islands. The training was held part of the long-term community-based coral restoration project, supported by the IKI Small Grant Programmes. We believe that these certifications will be able to provide the youths with deeper knowledge and skills necessary to help prevent diving accidents, recognize life threatening diving situations, perform or supervise in-water rescues, manage rescue operations and provide post-rescue aid. These youths, who already had their Open Water Dive certification, became visibly more comfortable and confident with diving after they completed these two dive courses.

Following the upgrading of the youths’ diving skills, we then conducted the Coral Restoration Training, also part of the same programme. Through this training that was open to more youths, we aimed to introduce at least four methods of coral restoration activities for these youths to carry out on their islands. The reception received was very encouraging, and the youths showed great interest to participate in the training. 

During the programme, the participants spent several nights at Mabul Island, learning about coral nurseries and the concrete block (bottle reef/rebar) method for rehabilitation. We were fortunate to have an experienced marine biologist join us to share valuable tips during our training sessions. We’re proud to say that all the youths successfully completed all the training sessions. Upon completion, they then proceeded to affix 621 coral fragments on the Coral Culture Table, while 30 more fragments were tied to the concrete blocks (bottle reef/rebar). Once these nurseries were set up, the team returned to these sites for maintenance activities, to ensure the best chance of survival of the coral fragments. Their dedication and effort is truly commendable, and we will continue to work closely with them in the next steps. 

Each team will expand their coral restoration efforts on their respective islands this year by applying the knowledge gained from the training sessions. In our recent discussions, we delved into the long-term vision for community organization and explored sustainable financing mechanisms, particularly through the innovative Semporna Coral Adoption Programme. This forward-thinking approach aims to ensure the continued success of coral rehabilitation efforts, fostering a self-sustaining model that empowers local communities.

Our colleagues in Sabah have had a busy end of 2023, working with the state government and local stakeholders. They carried out two projects under the ‘Community-Based Coral Restoration & Conservation Project’, a collaborative project with Sabah Parks funded by the Ministry of Tourism, Culture, and Environment of Sabah (KePKAS).

In early December, in collaboration with Sabah Parks, we organised a 3-day Sabah Reef Resilience Workshop in Semporna, attended by 22 participants from different agencies/organisations.

Activities during the workshop consisted of theory and knowledge-sharing on the importance of reef resilience. Participants also visited Selakan Island, where they learnt and familiarised themselves with the methods and underwater indicators, supervised by a trainer. They also conducted reef resilience assessments at two sites, within Tun Sakaran Marine Parks as part of the survey training. This was done to encourage hands-on experience and get to put their theoretical skills into practice.

Following the workshop, our team then conducted the reef resilience survey for Tun Sakaran Marine Parks (TSMP) in mid-December last year. 15 sites were assessed, with the help of several divers from island community groups, mainly from local islands such as Selakan, Mabul, Kulapuan, and Larapan. Our Sabah colleagues were also assisted by our team from Tioman and Kota Kinabalu, along with a member of the Timan Marine Conservation Group (TMCG). This provided our colleagues with a chance to collaborate and to benefit from each other's skills and expertise.