00:00Malaysia said Sunday, companies that buy its palm oil can adopt an orangutan as part of
00:06a scheme to protect the endangered apes.
00:08However, in a key revision of an earlier plan in May, the orangutans will not be allowed
00:13to leave the country.
00:15Plantations and Commodities Minister Johari Abdul Ghani came under fire for that earlier
00:20plan, where he proposed what he called an orangutan diplomacy scheme, sending them overseas.
00:26It came after the EU announced a ban on commodities like palm oil, linked to deforestation, a
00:31law Malaysia called discriminatory.
00:34Abdul Ghani's original idea was to give orangutans as trade gifts, as part of a response
00:39to fears over the forest clearing often used in producing palm oil.
00:44He spoke about the new plan on Sunday.
00:48We have to keep them here, and then we will engage with the countries or buyers of our
00:52palm oil.
00:53If they wish to collaborate in ensuring that the orangutans are protected and preserved
00:57forever, we invite them to come and participate in the conservation of their natural habitat
01:02here in Sabah.
01:05Sabah is one state of East Malaysia, a part of the country located on the island of Borneo
01:10that also includes the state of Sarawak.
01:12Abdul Ghani said the money from companies adopting orangutans will go to non-profits
01:17and Sabah's government to monitor the forests and ensure orangutans' safety.
01:22He also committed to stopping deforestation, ensuring forest cover stays above 50%.
01:29Marc Ancrenas is the scientific director of Hutan, a non-profit with a focus on orangutan
01:34research.
01:35He hopes the funds will help conserve habitats in ways that include corridors between fragmented
01:41forests.
01:42With the new technology, with drones, with satellite imagery, it becomes possible.
01:46So this is the first step of this entire idea.
01:50Once we know where are the forests, the small forest patches and where we have orangutans,
01:55we can start approaching the owner of the patches of forest, explain to them why it's
02:01important to create corridors of forest, where to set them up and so forth.
02:06To do that, we need funding, we need money, we need financial resources.
02:10According to the conservation group WWF, fewer than 105,000 orangutans remain on Borneo,
02:17mostly on the Indonesian side.
02:19However, Abdul Ghani says Sabah currently has around 15,000 of them, while Sarawak has
02:25around 2,000.
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