Kota Kinabalu: Targeted allocations under Budget 2027 have been proposed to transform four northern Sabah districts – Banggi, Kudat, Pitas and Kota Marudu – into an integrated economic corridor driven by the blue economy.
Sabah Digital Energy-based Blue Economy Growth Initiative chairman Raymond Alfred said the region’s maritime potential remained underutilised due to gaps in infrastructure, logistics, fisheries-support facilities and coastal security systems.
He said coordinated Federal and State investment could unlock the region’s cross-border trade potential within the Brunei Darussalam-Indonesia-Malaysia-Philippines East Asean Growth Area (BIMP-EAGA).
“Whether Banggi can truly function as a northern maritime gateway for Sabah and Asean depends on whether we now commit to the supporting infrastructure, maritime services, logistics ecosystem, security and governance required to turn geography into tangible economic returns,” he said in a statement.
At the centre of his proposal is a dedicated Banggi Maritime and Blue Economy Development Fund under Budget 2027, supported by a formal Kudat-Banggi-Pitas-Kota Marudu integrated economic corridor.
Raymond said an Economic Corridor Secretariat should be established to coordinate government agencies, investors, local communities and regional partners.
He said proposed priority projects should undergo feasibility, hydrographic and environmental studies. These include upgraded jetties, improved navigation aids, regular coastal shipping links, better road connections, reliable utilities and new cold-chain facilities.
The plan aims to move local fisheries beyond basic “fish-to-market” sales towards value-added “fish-to-export” operations through landing sites, ice plants, cold storage, processing facilities and export logistics.
This would create income opportunities for fishers, cooperatives, women-led businesses, young people and small-scale enterprises, he said.
Raymond also called for Budget 2027 support for sustainable aquaculture, marine-based tourism, marine-focused renewable energy, digital maritime monitoring and ship-repair services.
He stressed that maritime security infrastructure, including vessel-tracking systems, coastal radar and coordinated enforcement arrangements, must be developed alongside commercial activities.
On environmental protection, he said Tun Mustapha Park should be treated as the blue economy strategy’s core natural-capital asset rather than a barrier to development.
“The guiding approach must be conservation through sustainable development; we cannot treat coastal and marine spaces as an endless resource for shipping, fishing, aquaculture and tourism,” he said.
Under the proposed corridor framework, Kudat would serve as the main maritime-logistics centre, Banggi as a strategic island-based maritime and fisheries hub, Pitas as a fisheries and aquaculture centre, and Kota Marudu as a key supplier of agricultural produce and land-based logistics support.
Raymond described the corridor as a long-term strategic investment rather than a one-off infrastructure programme.
“Budget 2027 can mark the start of a fresh development strategy for northern Sabah, linking these four areas into one cohesive economic corridor, establishing Banggi as our Northern Maritime Gateway and Tun Mustapha Park as the natural-capital foundation of Sabah’s Blue Economy,” he said.
