KUCHING: The Sarawak Museum Department has launched a temporary exhibition, Pristine Seas: Bringing Back The Ocean, by the National Geographic Society, emphasising the importance of marine protected areas (MPAs) as a mechanism for protecting and restoring the world’s oceans.
The Pristine Seas project aims to restore the ocean's health and productivity while improving the livelihoods of coastal communities by safeguarding marine ecosystems from overfishing.
According to Minister for Tourism, Creative Industry and Performing Arts (MTCP), Dato Sri Abdul Karim Rahman Hamzah, while efforts to protect terrestrial treasures like forests, rivers, and mountains are commendable, the equally vital treasures of the ocean and its underwater wonders are often overlooked.
As a fishing and diving enthusiast, Dato Sri Abdul Karim observed that awareness among the fishing community has improved, with people now bringing plastic bags to collect their trash instead of discarding rubbish into the sea and rivers, reflecting a growing sense of responsibility.
“I would like to extend my congratulations to the Borneo Cultures Museum for organising such an exhibition in collaboration with National Geographic and other partners.
“This initiative aims to raise public awareness about the importance of preserving our marine heritage,” he said when speaking to reporters after launching the exhibition at Borneo Cultures Museum on Saturday.
The exhibition runs from October 28, 2024, to April 13, 2025, and has already welcomed 12,578 visitors as of November 20, 2024.
Dato Sri Abdul Karim expressed his hope that the exhibition would become the talk of the town, boosting tourism in Sarawak while inspiring the Sarawak Museum Department to produce more engaging and high-quality exhibitions in the future.
“The tourism industry has shown remarkable growth, with visitor arrival targets for 2022 and 2023 met, and the 2024 target of 4 million visitors achieved by early November.
So, in a way, we can say that we have been quite successful in terms of the number of tourist arrivals,” he added. -UKASnews
