Alternative Livelihood Project Boosts Marine Resource Management in Malaysia

 The Maliangin Island Community Association, located within the proposed one-million-hectare Tun Mustapha Park area in Sabah, Malaysia, has signed a contract to sell 1,200 pieces of woven handicrafts to Shangri-La’s Tanjung Aru Resort and Spa—strengthening the sustainability of its community-based livelihood and marine resource management activities. The handicraft project, which builds on a public-private partnership forged with Shangri-La in recent years with the support of WWF-Malaysia and USAID’s Coral Triangle Support Partnership, is expected to boost the community’s income, reduce dependence on marine resources, and partially fund coral reef monitoring within the marine park.

The project, managed by women and youth, will be scaled up into a larger program that includes eco-tourism and will be replicated at other sites within the Park. Tun Mustapha Park, located in the western part of the Coral Triangle, is home to endangered green sea turtles and dugongs, making it a strategic area for sustainable ecotourism. It is also a vital source of livelihood for 80,000 coastal inhabitants of diverse ethnic groups.

Photo: Woven handicrafts from Maliangin Island Community. Credit: WWF-Malaysia