SANDAKAN: The Sabah Ministry of Industrial Development, Entrepreneurship and Transport is preparing a working paper on barter trade between Sabah and Southern Philippines for presentation at the State Cabinet meeting, said its Minister Datuk Ewon Benedick.
Ewon, who is also Deputy Chief Minister III, said there had been strong demand from chambers of commerce, especially the Chinese business community, for barter trade activities to be revived along Sabah’s east coast.
“I inspected the facilities at the jetty operated by the Sabah Ports and Harbours Department in Sandakan, which will be used for barter trade activities. I received numerous requests from Chinese business chambers in Tawau and Sandakan to plan this activity again.
“I also received a visit from the Minister of Trade of Mindanao, who expressed a desire for closer cooperation to ensure that barter trade can be implemented, in addition to the involvement of the Ministry of Investment, Trade and Industry (Miti),” he told reporters after attending the Lantern Festival with the Sandakan community, here, Friday night.
However, Ewon said any plans in this direction must comply with appropriate governance, including legal requirements and monitoring.
“Whatever the decision is, the direction (of the Sabah Government) will be shared with industry players,” he added.
Meanwhile, he said the State Government had asked the concessionaires managing ports in Sabah to provide the necessary equipment, including machinery, to improve efficiency at the ports, including the one here.
“I see the development of the Kinabalu Palm Oil Industrial Park following cooperation between the Sabah Government and Petronas for gas exploration in the Mutiara Cluster, with the target of supplying the gas to the industrial park by 2029.
“That will be a guarantee of energy supply to the industry in Sandakan; that’s why we need to prepare a port for that, and not wait until 2029 to enhance efficiency at the port,” he said.
Among other things, he said he would also monitor the implementation of two initiatives, namely deepening the shipping channel to Sandakan Port, while the sand dredged from the channel would be used to reclaim land at the Sipitang Oil and Gas Industrial Park (Sogip).
“The challenge regarding Sandakan Port is the shipping channel, which is shallow, so many large vessels cannot berth even after arriving in the vicinity of the port. These vessels have to wait for high tide before they can enter,” he added.
