Malaysia plans to provide orangutans as items to international locations that purchase its palm oil as a part of an “orangutan diplomacy” technique to ease considerations over the environmental impression of the commodity.
The south-east Asian nation is the world’s second greatest producer of palm oil, which is discovered in additional than half of grocery store packaged items – from pizza and biscuits, to lipstick and shampoos. International demand for palm oil has been blamed for driving deforestation in Malaysia and neighbouring Indonesia.
Malaysia’s plantations and commodities minister, Johari Abdul Ghani, stated on social media the nation couldn’t “take a defensive method to the problem of palm oil”.
He stated: “As an alternative we have to present the international locations of the world that Malaysia is a sustainable oil palm producer and is dedicated to defending forests and environmental sustainability.”
Giving orangutans to buying and selling companions such because the EU, China and India would “show to the worldwide group that Malaysia is dedicated to biodiversity conservation”, the minister stated, likening the technique to China’s “panda diplomacy”.
He additionally urged palm oil firms to collaborate with NGOs to assist protect and supply technical experience on wildlife in Malaysia.
Malaysia is dealing with strain from the EU, which final yr permitted an import ban on commodities linked to deforestation. Malaysia criticised the legislation as discriminatory.
The Bornean orangutan, which is endemic to the island of Borneo, is listed as critically endangered by the Worldwide Union for Conservation of Nature.
It’s estimated that 100 years in the past there have been in all probability greater than 230,000 orangutans in whole, however the Bornean orangutan’s inhabitants is considered about 104,700, whereas the Sumatran orangutan, discovered within the north of the Indonesian island of Sumatra, is believed to have a inhabitants of about 7,500, in accordance with the conservation group WWF.
Wildlife organisations have known as on the Malaysian authorities to think about different methods to sign its dedication to defending the species.
The environmental group Justice for Wildlife Malaysia stated: “Whereas we perceive that orangutan diplomacy is likely one of the many choices to handle this subject, it is usually essential to discover various diplomatic measures to enhance relations between the EU and the nation.” The thought of orangutan diplomacy would require intensive scientific and authorized analysis, stated the non-profit analysis group.
“Defending the forest, which is the pure habitat of orangutans, is crucial step that must be taken. The funds that may have been spent on orangutan diplomacy needs to be directed in the direction of in situ conservation efforts for these primates and the preservation of their forest house.”
The Malaysian Primatological Society’s scientific adviser, Dr Felicity Oram, welcomed the federal government’s dedication to supporting coexistence with Malaysian wildlife, however stated: “Whereas the ‘panda diplomacy’ mannequin has efficiently promoted and funded the conservation of 1 iconic species, Malaysia has the potential to work cooperatively in our personal technique to facilitate wildlife conservation by habitat preservation, habitat rehabilitation, and coexistence with wildlife the place they nonetheless survive within the wild, which may doubtlessly have a a lot better impression and set an instance to others elsewhere to foster holistic on-site conservation administration inside their pure habitats.”
Beijing has lengthy used panda diplomacy as a type of gentle energy, and usually loans the animals to overseas zoos, usually at a price of $1m (£801,250) a yr for a pair, with this cash being spent on conservation. The pandas and their offspring are later returned to China to proceed breeding.
