Posted on August, 24 2015

Located at Four Points Hotel, Sandakan, Sabah, Malaysia, the 9^th Heart of Borneo (HoB) Trilateral Meeting was officially opened by the Deputy Minister of Natural Resources and Environment Malaysia, the Honorable Datuk Ir. Haji Hamim bin Samuri. 

The annual Heart of Borneo trilateral meeting brought together representatives from the three Bornean countries; Brunei Darussalam, Indonesia and Malaysia, with an aim to develop a common vision for green economic development on the island. The meeting was also attended by representatives of Bornean communities as well as some partners and observers from the non-governmental organization.
 
In his opening remarks, Datuk Hamim highlighted the 9^th HoB theme “Bridging HoB Landscape and Beyond”, is timely to address habitat fragmentation which was caused by land clearance for other land uses, and that a strong commitment from the three countries to implement the corridor project in HoB will create a sustainable and harmonized living environment. “Malaysia will always look forward to working together with Brunei Darussalam and Indonesia for greater effectiveness and efficiency through creating joint implementation under Heart of Borneo Initiative”, said Datuk Hamim.  

The event comprised a two-day meeting between the government agencies responsible for the Heart of Borneo. At the initial meeting, representatives reviewed progress to date and committed to a number of new initiatives. All three member countries presented country reports on the development and progress that has been made in the HoB since the signing of the HoB Declaration in 2007.

The two day T9 meeting from 11-12 August 2015 delivered some key decisions to be highlighted. With regards to the current initiatives of the HoB Corridor Project Implementation, Brunei Darussalam emphasized HoB as priority areas for biodiversity and environmental research and Indonesia outlined strategy in strengthening cooperation between Member Countries. While Malaysia noted that there is a need to continue in practicing open door policy to allow more support from the stakeholders and local communities. 

The meeting also took note of the HoB initiative participating in international fora and to be showcase at other regional forums to promote this initiative. Overall the 9^th HoB Trilateral Meeting demonstrated that the government’s will to succeed was strong. The next challenge is to keep this momentum and commitment going until the next trilateral meeting which will be held in Brunei Darussalam in 2016.