MALAYSIA has recently established the Tun Mustapha Park (TMP) – a protected marine park comprising of one million-hectare of coral reef, seagrass, mangrove, productive fishing grounds and 50 islands off the coast of northern Borneo.

The park – situated within the Coral Triangle – contains the second largest concentration of coral reefs in Malaysia and will mark the country’s largest marine-protected area.

The area plays a big role for rich marine biodiversity, and is home to 250 species of hard corals, 360 species of fish, as well as elusive wildlife including dugongs and endangered sea turtles.

The area is also under threat of habitat degradation, overfishing and pollution, but the implemented marine-protected TMP aims to combat those issues.

The conservation efforts come after more than 13 years of work led by the Sabah state government, WWF Malaysia, local communities and international partners.

The Coral Triangle directly sustains and protects more than 120 million people in coastal communities across Malaysia, Indonesia, the Philippines, Papua New Guinea, the Solomon Islands and Timor-Leste.

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Source: travelwireasia.com