By Karen Bong
KUCHING, Aug 26: The Sarawak government has invested more than RM7 billion into building new water treatment plants and upgrading old pipes to guarantee a consistent supply of clean water for the people and industries across the State.
Premier Datuk Patinggi Tan Sri Abang Johari Tun Openg emphasised that even after 60 years of Merdeka, there are still rural and remote areas without water.
“Despite the federal government’s approval of treatment plant proposals, funding often fell short, and this prompted the Sarawak government to step in with its own allocations.
“To provide clean water for both urban and rural Sarawak, we invested RM6 billion of State funds into treatment plants. On top of that, we allocated RM1.1 billion to replace old pipes and reduce non-revenue water. These efforts are ongoing.
“We are targeting statewide coverage by 2030. But to fully connect to the water grid system, we will need at least another RM2 billion, bringing total investments to about RM10 billion,” he revealed when officiating the launch of Sarawak Water Sdn Bhd (Sarawak Water) and Sarawak Water mobile app at the Borneo Convention Centre Kuching (BCCK) today.
He noted that many underground pipes are old and had been damaged during road construction due to a lack of accurate data, underscoring the urgent need for modernisation.
With that, Abang Johari stressed that bold reforms were necessary to transform the way Sarawak manages its abundant water resources.
“Sarawak is fortunate. We have three sources of water – our many rivers and dams, rainfall as we are in the tropics, and rain harvesting. While some countries have conflicts over shared rivers like the Nile in Africa or the Mekong in Asia, we are blessed with the Sarawak River, Batang Lupar, Sadong, Saribas, Rajang, Baram, Limbang and many more,” he said.
He emphasised that water security is not only crucial for households but also for attracting investments.
“Any investor coming to Sarawak will ask for three things – power, water and manpower. For industries in Bintulu, Samalaju and Samajaya, reliable industrial water is a must. Even data centres need water to cool their systems,” he pointed out.
To ensure optimisation and efficiency, the Sarawak government merged three existing water entities into Sarawak Water, a centralised body tasked with managing resources, overseeing sustainability, and planning for future industrial demand.
Looking ahead, Abang Johari reaffirmed the government’s commitment to achieving full water supply coverage across Sarawak by 2030.
“Water is essential for life. We must manage it prudently for our people today, and for future generations,” he concluded.
Deputy Premiers Datuk Amar Awang Tengah Ali Hasan and Datuk Amar Dr Sim Kui Hian, Minister of Utility and Telecommunication Dato Sri Julaihi Narawi, as well as Minister of Women, Childhood and Community Wellbeing Development Dato Sri Fatimah Abdullah were among the distinguished guests present. — DayakDaily
