Greater Kuching refers to the urbanised areas surrounding the metropolitan city of Kuching in Malaysia. Kuching is the capital of the state of Sarawak and is the largest city in the state. [1] [2] The area comprising a total area of 2030.94 square kilometres.
Greater Kuching was fully inspired from Greater Kuala Lumpur, but only in Sarawak. The economic centre and focus point of Kuching is a small area by the coast known as the Kuching Central Business District (also known as Kuching CBD) or Kuching City Centre.
In June 2022, Premier of Sarawak, Abang Abdul Rahman Johari Abang Openg announced the plan to set up Greater Kuching Coordinated Development Agency (GKCDA) to coordinate all development projects in the area, including Kuching, Samarahan, Serian, Padawan and the upcoming two new district area (Bau and Balai Ringin). [3]
Basically there are four (4) major local authorities that fully managed to improvising, stabilize, and modernizing Greater Kuching:
Not only that, there is also another nine (9) new additional sub areas which is also as the parts of Greater Kuching Coordinated Development Agency (GKCDA). This including:
Metropolitan areas of Malaysia
Kuching, officially the City of Kuching, is the capital and the most populous city in the state of Sarawak in Malaysia. It is also the capital of Kuching Division. The city is on the Sarawak River at the southwest tip of Sarawak on the island of Borneo and covers an area of 431 km2 (166 sq mi) with a population about 165,642 in the Kuching North administrative region and 159,490 in the Kuching South administrative region—a total of 325,132 people.
Serian is a town, and the capital of the Serian separated on 11 April 2015 from Samarahan Division, Sarawak, Malaysia. It is located about 40 miles (64 km) from Kuching. Sub-district headquarters towns are Balai Ringin and Tebedu.
Bidayuh is the collective name for several indigenous groups found in southern Sarawak, Malaysia and northern West Kalimantan, Indonesia, on the island of Borneo, which are broadly similar in language and culture. The name Bidayuh means 'inhabitants of land'. Originally from the western part of Borneo, the collective name Land Dayak was first used during the period of Rajah James Brooke, the White Rajah of Sarawak. At times, they were also lesser referred to as Klemantan people. They constitute one of the main indigenous groups in Sarawak and West Kalimantan and live in towns and villages around Kuching and Serian in the Malaysian state of Sarawak, while in the Indonesian province of West Kalimantan they are mainly concentrated in the northern Sanggau Regency. In Sarawak, most of Bidayuh population can be found within 40 km of the geographical area known as Greater Kuching, within the Kuching and Serian Division. They are the second-largest Dayak ethnic group in Sarawak after the Iban and one of the major Dayak tribes in West Kalimantan.
Samarahan Division is one of the twelve administrative divisions in Sarawak, Malaysia. Formerly part of the First Division, which included Kuching, it became a separate Division on 24 July 1986, with a total area of 4,967.4 square kilometres.
Kota Samarahan, formerly known as Muara Tuang, is a town and the administrative seat of the Samarahan District in Samarahan Division, Sarawak, Malaysia. It is also a satellite town for Kuching due to its proximity to the city part of Greater Kuching area. The Sarawak government position Kota Samarahan as the medical and education hub of the state. Kota Samarahan can be considered as the 'heart' of Malay/Muslims in Sarawak which forms approximately over 56% of the population, thus make it as another "Putrajaya" version of Sarawak.
Kuching Division is one of the twelve administrative divisions in Sarawak, Malaysia. Formerly part of what was called the "First Division", it is the center and the starting point of modern Sarawak. Kuching Division has a total area of 4,559.5 square kilometres.
Divisions are the primary subdivisions of Sabah and Sarawak, the states in East Malaysia. Each division is subdivided into districts — this is different in Peninsular Malaysia whereby districts are generally the primary subdivisions of a state. Each division is headed by a resident.
The Simunjan District is a district in the Samarahan Division of Sarawak, Malaysia, located between Serian and Sri Aman. It borders Sebuyau and Samarahan and lies approximately 51.4 kilometres (32 mi) east-south-east of the state capital Kuching.
The Diocese of Kuching is a diocese of the Anglican Church of the Province of South East Asia that covers Sarawak and Brunei. Founded in 1962, the see was originally established as the Bishopric of Sarawak linked to the Diocese of Labuan in 1855. The current bishop is the Right Rev'd Danald Jute, 14th Lord Bishop of the Diocese of Kuching and Brunei, who was consecrated on 13 August 2017. His seat is at St. Thomas' Cathedral, Kuching.
Padawan is a sub-district of Kuching District, Sarawak, Malaysia. The name is also used to refer to the local government in Sarawak, the Padawan Municipal Council, and to Bidayuh Village, which is also known as Kampung Padawan. The Jalan Padawan is the name of a road near mile 23 of Kuching-Serian Highway.
Balai Ringin is a town, constituency and autonomous sub-district in Serian Division, Sarawak, Malaysia, about half an hour drive from Serian town along the Pan Borneo Highway.
The Urban Transformation Centre (UTC) (Malay: Pusat Transformasi Bandar) is a public amenities centre located at some state capitals and urban areas in Malaysia. The rural counterpart of UTC is Rural Transformation Center(RTC). UTC can be found in the tallest building by state in Malaysia, such as City Plaza Tower in Kedah, KOMTAR Tower in Penang.
The Kuching Urban Transportation System (KUTS) is an under-construction Autonomous Rail Rapid Transit (ART) system network that serves Greater Kuching, Samarahan, and Serian. It is the first ART system network to be built outside of China and also the first metro rail system in the state of Sarawak which was touted as one of the methods to ease traffic congestion in the city of Kuching. The project is currently constructed by Sarawak Metro using state funds provided by the Development Bank of Sarawak (DBOS). The ART lines will connect Kuching to Samarahan and Serian as well as future lines to other parts of Greater Kuching.
Siburan District is a town and district under the Serian Division, Sarawak, Malaysia. It is 26 km by road from Kuching.