Sabah Parks is a conservation-based statutory body established in 1964 with the purpose of conserving the scenic, scientific and historic heritage of the state of Sabah, Malaysia, on the island of Borneo. The organisation is also responsible for the management and promotion of the various protected reserves in Sabah, in particular those designated as national parks. It is also mandated to develop tourism-friendly facilities to accommodate tourist arrivals to these reserves and ensure that the state of the reserves is not compromised. The first choice for inclusion in a park system was Mount Kinabalu. As a result, Kinabalu Park was gazetted in 1964, and today it is designated as a World Heritage Site.
Sebatik Island is an island off the eastern coast of Borneo, split between Indonesia and Malaysia. It is one of the 92 officially listed outlying islands of Indonesia.
Sipadan is the only oceanic island in Malaysia, rising 600 metres (2,000 ft) from the seabed. It is located in the Celebes Sea off the east coast of Sabah, Malaysia. It was formed by living corals growing on top of an extinct volcanic cone that took thousands of years to develop. Sipadan is located at the heart of the Indo-Pacific basin, the centre of one of the richest marine habitats in the world. More than 400 species of fish and hundreds of coral species have been classified in this ecosystem. Sipadan Island was at the top of Rodale's Scuba Diving Magazine Gold List for 'The Top Dive Destination in the World'. In fact it shared its top spot with 2 other destinations known for the diversity of their marine life — the Galápagos Islands of Ecuador and Truk in Micronesia. Furthermore, one of the dive operators; Scuba Junkie was voted by the public the "Best Dive Resort in the World 2020" at DiveMagazine's annual Dive Travel Awards.
Ligitan is a small island in Tawau, Sabah, located east of the island of Borneo, in the Celebes Sea. In the past, the island was at the centre of a territorial dispute between Malaysia and Indonesia. The matter was brought for adjudication before the International Court of Justice and, at the end of 2002, the Court awarded the island along with the island of Sipadan to Malaysia, on the basis of the "effective occupation" displayed by the latter's predecessor and the absence of any other superior title. The Philippines had applied to intervene in the proceedings on the basis of its claim to Northern Borneo, but its request was turned down by the Court early in 2001.
Tawau, formerly known as Tawao, is the capital of the Tawau District in Sabah, Malaysia. It is the third-largest city in Sabah, after Kota Kinabalu and Sandakan. It is located on the Semporna Peninsula in the southeast coast of the state in the administrative centre of Tawau Division, which is bordered by the Sulu Sea to the east, the Celebes Sea to the south at Cowie Bay and shares a border with North Kalimantan, Indonesia. The town had an estimated population as of 2010, of 113,809, while the whole municipality area had a population of 397,673. The municipal area had a population of 372,615 at the 2020 Census.
Tawau Division is one of the five administrative sub-divisions of Sabah, Malaysia. It occupies a total of 14,905 square kilometres or 20% of Sabah's territory. The main towns include the capital of Tawau, Lahad Datu, Kunak and Semporna. Tawau division has 26% of Sabah's total population, with the main indigenous groups consisting of the Bajau, Suluk, Ida'an, Tidong, Cocos, Murut, Lun Bawang/Lun Dayeh as well as a minority of mixed ethnic groups. Large numbers of both legal and illegal immigrants from Indonesia such as the Buginese and Torajans, from East Timor the Timorese, from the Philippines the Tausūg and Visayans as well South and West Asian immigrants such as Pakistanis, Indians and Arabs can be found in this area. As with the rest of Sabah, the division also has large numbers of ethnic Chinese.
Semporna is the capital of the Semporna District in the Tawau Division of Sabah, Malaysia. Its population was estimated to be around 35,301 in 2010.
Tawau Airport is an airport located 15 nautical miles north east of Tawau, Sabah, Malaysia. It is one of two airports in Sabah with immigration counters for international flights, the other being Kota Kinabalu International Airport.
Mabul is a small island near the southeastern coast of Sabah in Malaysia. The island has been a fishing village since the 1970s. After the 1990s, Mabul gained popularity with scuba divers due to its proximity to Sipadan island.
Swallow Reef, also known as Malay: Pulau Layang-Layang; Vietnamese: Đá Hoa Lau; Mandarin Chinese: 燕子島; pinyin: Yànzi Dǎo; Celerio Reef, is an oceanic atoll of the Spratly Islands administered by Malaysia.
The Mantanani Islands are a group of three islands off the north-west coast of the state of Sabah, Malaysia, opposite the town of Kota Belud, in northern Borneo. The largest island is Mantanani Besar; the other two are Mantanani Kecil and Lungisan. It is a popular site for recreational diving and is known for its dugongs.
The Semporna Peninsula is a peninsula in Tawau Division, Sabah, Malaysia. It consists of coastal areas and numerous isolated hills and mountains rising to over 305 metres (1,001 ft). The Peninsula is also considered as a volcanic arc of the region with several volcanoes active during the Holocene period is located on the area.
Manukan Island is the second largest island in the Tunku Abdul Rahman National Park, Malaysia's first marine national park. It is located in the East Malaysian state of Sabah, just off the coast of Kota Kinabalu and is easily accessible by boat.
The Eastern Sabah Security Zone (ESSZONE) is a security zone in the Malaysian state of Sabah that was launched by Malaysian Prime Minister Najib Razak on 25 March 2013 following persistent attacks by pirates and militants from the southern Philippines that occurred in the eastern part of Sabah especially after the 2013 Lahad Datu standoff. It includes the districts of Kudat, Kota Marudu, Pitas, Beluran, Sandakan, Kinabatangan, Lahad Datu, Kunak, Semporna and Tawau, which is neighbouring to the Philippines.
Mataking Island is a Malaysian island located in the Celebes Sea on the state of Sabah. Mataking Island is home to the first 'Underwater Post Office' in Malaysia and is connected to Pulau Mataking Kecil via a narrow sand bank. Mataking Island is a private island belonging to the Reef Dive Resort featuring luxury chalets and a dive center serving divers visiting Sipadan.
Layang-Layang Airport is located on Swallow Reef in the Spratly Islands of the South China Sea. It is about 300 kilometres (190 mi) north of Kota Kinabalu, Sabah. The airport serves a Royal Malaysian Navy naval station and a 3-star diving resort as well as a marine research facility, MARSAL.
The North Eastern Sabah Railway Line is a proposed railway line from the city of Kota Kinabalu that would connect Kudat, Sandakan and Tawau as part of the Sabah State Railway line extension plan. The plan was supported by the Malaysian federal government represented by Transport Minister Liow Tiong Lai on 17 September 2015. On 21 March 2017, the study to establish the line to Kudat started, with around RM1 million being allocated.
Sabah State Library is a state department under the State Ministry of Education and Innovation Sabah which manages each of the public library branches in Sabah state of Malaysia. The headquarters and the main state library are located on Tasik Road, off Maktab Gaya Road in Luyang of Kota Kinabalu since June 2004.
Miss Scuba International is an international beauty pageant that was first held in 2011 in Sipadan Mabul Resort, Malaysia and has since become a global event that raises awareness about ocean health and marine conservation.
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