KUALA LUMPUR: The Sarawak Government has called on the Federal Government to increase funding for mineral exploration and development in the state to strengthen efforts in identifying its true mineral potential and accelerate the growth of downstream industries.

Sarawak Deputy Premier Datuk Amar Awang Tengah Ali Hasan, representing Sarawak Premier Datuk Patinggi Tan Sri (Dr) Abang Abdul Rahman Zohari Tun Datuk Abang Openg, raised the matter when attending the National Mineral Council Meeting here on Tuesday.

The meeting was chaired by Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Energy Transition and Water Transformation Datuk Amar Fadillah Yusof.

According to Datuk Amar Awang Tengah, the Sarawak Government has demonstrated its continued commitment to developing the state's mineral sector by allocating substantial funding for geological and mineral resource studies under the 12th Malaysia Plan (12MP) and the 13MP.

He explained that Sarawak allocated RM15 million under the 12MP and a further RM18 million under the 13MP to conduct studies on the presence and potential of mineral resources across the state.

However, he noted that allocations from the Federal Government were significantly lower, amounting to only RM1.36 million under the 12MP and RM1.91 million under the 13MP, which he described as disproportionate to Sarawak's vast land area and mineral resource potential.

He therefore urged the Federal Government to consider increasing the allocation for Sarawak to bring it in line with those received by other states.

He pointed out that Johor received an allocation of RM6.5 million, while Sabah, Perak and Kedah each received RM4.5 million for the same purpose.

Datuk Amar Awang Tengah said a larger allocation would strengthen geological mapping and mineral exploration efforts, thus enabling a more comprehensive assessment of Sarawak's mineral wealth while attracting greater investment and fostering the development of downstream industries in the future.

The National Mineral Council Meeting also discussed various matters related to the development of Malaysia's mineral industry, including efforts to strengthen cooperation between the Federal Government and state governments to ensure the country's mineral resources are managed strategically and sustainably. -UKASnews