By Marlynda Meraw
KUCHING, Oct 21: The Sarawak government completes perimeter surveys for approximately 1.249 million hectares (3.086 million acres) of Native Customary Rights (NCR) land under the ‘New Initiative’ programme commencing October 2010 that runs through September 30, 2026.
According to Minister of Natural Resources and Urban Development (MUDeNR) Datuk Amar Awang Tengah Ali Hasan, out of the total surveyed, approximately 979,000 hectares (2.42 million acres) were gazetted as Bumiputera Communal Reserves (Agricultural) under Section 6 of the Sarawak Land Code.
“Since 2017, the surveying of individual lots has also been intensified to facilitate the issuance of land titles under Section 18; to date, 112,711 lots have been successfully surveyed,” said Awang Tengah during his winding up speech at the Sarawak Legislative Assembly today.
Awang Tengah, who is also the Deputy Premier, noted that to accelerate NCR land surveying, the State government expanded the capacity of the Land and Survey Department by recruiting 467 new officers, engaging private surveyors, and implementing advanced surveying technologies that offer greater speed and precision.
“The Sarawak government has approved RM40 million to strengthen this programme. Meanwhile, the Federal government has approved RM15 million under the 13th Malaysia Plan (13MP), with RM2 million already disbursed to the Sarawak Land and Survey Department in 2026,” said Awang Tengah. – DayakDaily
