All information of tourism sabah

31Jul

RM50,000 Awaits MGM Pageant Winner This Year

Kota Kinabalu: This year's Mitarab Gimpuhut Momogun (MGM) winner will bring home prizes worth about RM50,000, including a cash prize of RM10,000. The beauty pageant for Rungus and northern beauties which will become the highlight of the Magahau Fest' finale tomorrow (Monday) will be participated by 21 Rungus beauties from around the country. MGM received numerous sponsorships, including from two private higher learning institutions which offer scholarships to the top winners. Apart from that, the winner for the MGM pageant will also be offered to join Samora and Tourism Malaysia delegates to the International French Travel Market (IFTM) 2017 in Paris, France. Magahau Fest organiser cum Sabah Momogun Rungus Association (Samora) president Datuk Jelani Hamdan said the total prizes for the MGM top seven is worth more than RM300, 000. "The pageant aims to produce skilled ambassadors, in terms of cultural skills such as making traditional crafts, embroidery and dances. "And that is why MGM is not merely a beauty pageant as the judging criteria falls heavily on cultural skills. "The organisers want the pageant to be not only competitive but also educational," he said during a press conference at Ujana Rimba Tropika Park, here, on Saturday. Jelani also disclosed the pageant also witnessed an increase in language proficiency among participants this year, compared to previous editions. "This year's contestants are better prepared…they knew how the competition is being organised, so they made preparations like studying the Rungus language as well as the culture." He said MGM is an excellent avenue to ignite the young generation's interests on traditional culture. On Magahau Fest, Jelani said the festival which has been included in the country and State tourism calendar will attract more than 5,000 attendees, including 100 confirmed foreign tourists. The activities for the National-level Magahau Fest celebration started on Jul 27 with the finale being held on Jul 31 at Puruvan Square, Matunggong. The Magahau Fest was launched at Kanibongan Community Hall, Pitas, on Jul 8 where Pitas Zone was selected as the curtain-raiser for this year's celebration. After Pitas Zone, the fest was held in six other zones – Peninsula Zone, Kota Marudu Zone, Kudat Zone, Beluran Zone, Kota Kinabalu Zone and Matunggong Zone. Among the activities lined up for the fest are traditional sports, traditional food competition, Mitarab Monurizak (singing competition), Mitarab dot Band (band competition), Sodop Papak Tavasi (gala night) apart from the MGM beauty pageant. - Ricardo Unto   Source: TheBorneoPost
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27Jul

FAMA Wants to Cultivate ‘Musang King’ and ‘Black Thorn’

KOTA KINABALU: The Federal Agriculture Marketing Authority (FAMA) will introduce the cultivation of high-grade clones of ‘Musang King’ and ‘Black Thorn’ durians in Sabah. Its chairman Tan Sri Badruddin Amiruldin said the pilot project will kick off once the location of the farm, soil and temperature suitability at the farm are confirmed. He said the long-term plan is to commercialise these durians for the domestic and international markets. “Sabah has plenty of beautiful lands and is endowed with lands that are suitable for fruit planting,” he said, adding that the State is a favourite destination among tourists from China, Hong Kong and Taiwan, who love fruits. He also said that FAMA would visit China next month to promote Malaysian fruits especially durians. “We will even promote durian paste as a delicacy in China,” he said after paying a courtesy call on Head of State Tun Juhar Mahiruddin at the Istana here yesterday. On another matter, he said FAMA would open a factory in Tenom to process bananas from Sabah. “We are now exporting Sabah bananas to peninsula and Sarawak as the bananas here have their own unique texture and taste. “If we process and pack them nicely, we can improve their quality and thus better returns in the oversea market,” he said, adding that the local cultivators would also earn more. Meanwhile, Badruddin urged landowners who have idle lands to contact them so that ‘something could be cultivated on the land.’ “Our office can help whether the landowner wants to cultivate vegetables or fruits,” he said. FAMA can assist rural folks to earn better if they have crops that can be marketed. “The farmer can register with us and we will market their produce for them,” he added. He also urged Sabah youth to play their role in the food truck industry which is growing in popularity. Present was FAMA deputy director-general Mohd Anis Mohd Yasin. Source: New Sabah Times
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26Jul

Rural Tourism Roadshow to Introduce New Attractions

KOTA KINABALU: Sabah Tourism Board (STB) will continue to identify new products around the State in tandem with the positive growth of the tourism industry here. As such, STB will lead an event where rural tourism product owners could engage, promote and partner with tour operators. “This is the time to show the world what rural areas in Sabah can offer in terms of tourism products,” said chairman of Sabah Tourism Board, Datuk Joniston Bangkuai during a courtesy call on Chief Minister Datuk Seri Panglima Musa Hj Aman. Musa agreed that it is a very good initiative to showcase what Sabah’s rural areas are offering for the thriving tourism industry. “It is indeed very important to tell Sabah’s rural story to the world including its natural attractions, rich cultural heritage and an array of tourism products. Developing rural tourism will also assist our rural folks in uplifting their livelihood. I commend STB on this effort to give touristic value to the lesser known parts of Sabah,” he said. The first Sabah Rural Tourism Roadshow 2017 is about appreciating and publicizing new and available rural tourism products to the general public as well as tourism industry players, who will create promotions and packages for both domestic and international segments. Four districts, namely Kiulu, Ranau, Kadamaian and Tambunan, will be the highlight during the roadshow which will be held on August 5 and 6 at Imago Shopping Mall, which is also sponsoring the venue. Activities like quizzes and games such as butod eating challenge, treasure hunt, traditional performances and games and children’s activities will be available at the event. “This roadshow is the result of a workshop organized by STB in May for district offices that focus on developing district and rural tourism by activating their respective District Tourism Councils. STB has put a huge amount of effort in supporting this initiative since 2014,” said Joniston. Also present during the courtesy call were STB general manager Gordon Yapp, Kiulu Tourism Association president Dr Edmon Guntis, Kadamaian Tourism Association president Walter Kandayon and STB senior product manager Julinus Jimit.   Source: TheBorneoPost
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26Jul

New Marine Aquarium Centre at Manukan Island Another Tourist Draw

KOTA KINABALU: The new Marine Aquarium Centre at Manukan Island will not only serve as a tourist attraction, but will also serve as a platform to educate the public on the importance and functions of marine life, especially sharks, said Sabah Parks director Dr Jamli Nais. “This aquarium will be the supplier of information and, hopefully, will inspire visitors to learn more about the importance and functions of sharks in the marine ecosystem. “This is in line with the Tunku Abdul Rahman Park’s declaration, which is to be a shark sanctuary along with the other marine parks in Sabah,” Jamli said at the soft launching of the aquarium yesterday. Jamli disclosed that among the types of sharks that will be displayed is a blacktip reef shark. He added that the park will be launched officially on September 1 and the entrance fee for the rest of the year will be free. “This concept all started from an idea which is to have a marine exhibition centre very close to the city. With this new centre that we have just built, it will be easier for tourists to come and visit, as Manukan Island is only a 15-minute boat journey from the city centre,” Jamli added. Yesterday’s event also marked the 43rd anniversary of the proclamation of the Tunku Abdul Rahman Park. Over the past ten years, Tunku Abdul Rahman Park had recorded 1,234 accidents, and only 195 of these involved accidents where the victim had nearly drowned or drowned. Out of the 195 cases, only 5.1 per cent were fatal accidents. As of now, the parks in Sabah have a total of 48 coast guards and four dive marshals (all stationed at Sipadan Island). Twenty-eight of these coast guards are stationed at Tunku Abdul Rahman Park and 11 are in Manukan Island, Jamli said. Also present at the event were Tunku Abdul Rahman Park manager  Anthony Tinggi, and research officer cum marine biologist, Nasrulhakim Maidin. Source: TheBorneoPost
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24Jul

Sandakan Attracts Tourists with its History and Natural Heritage

EARLY morning flights from Kota Kinabalu to Sabah’s east coast town of Sandakan are usually full with many of the passengers comprising tourists. If they are lucky, they will have a breathtaking aerial view of Mount Kinabalu and the highlands surrounding it. That is just a taste of things to come because the Lower Kinabatangan region is the gateway to some of Sabah’s renowned natural attractions, including the proboscis monkey, Bornean pygmy elephants and the orang utan. Sepilok, about 30km from Sandakan town, is where the well-known orang utan rehabilitation centre is located. Here, the primates can be seen in their natural environment, a forest reserve. Sepilok is also home to the sun bear conservation centre as well as the rainforest discovery centre where visitors can literally walk between jungle treetops. For the more adventurous, an hour’s boat ride from Sandakan town to the Sulu Sea are three islands — Pulau Selinga, Pulau Bakungan Kecil and Pulau Gulisan — that collectively make up Sabah’s turtle islands. The turtles are said to land almost every night to lay their eggs on these islands. In fact, Malaysia’s first turtle hatchery was set up at Pulau Selingan in 1966. As the first administrative centre of North Borneo (the former name for Sabah),
Sandakan has a number of historical landmarks, some dating back to the late 1800s. Among them are Masjid Jamek and the Sam Sing Kung temple in the downtown area as well as the St Michael All Angels church nearby. Another historical landmark is the house where author Agnes Newton Keith lived prior to World War 2. Keith wrote about her experiences in her book, Land Below the Wind, that has since become a tagline for Sabah. Sandakan Kapitan Cina or community leader James Leong has witnessed the transformation of his town over the years. “Whatever the changes, Sandakan will always have that small-town feel. Here, everyone knows each other.” Source: TheStar
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