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How We Are Helping
What is Pahang doing to Save The Malayan Tigers in Pahang?
- Majlis Biodiversiti Negeri
- Pahang Wildlife Conservation Committee
- Engaging with conservation professionals
- Establishing a scouting team to assist wildlife enforcement work in the Tekai forest landscape
- Engaging with national-level initiatives (MYTTF Pahang)
- Existing protected areas – protection of Taman Negara
- Exploring landscape approaches to address wildlife conservation and economic needs (ESG)
- Identifying new Protected Areas in conjunction with the National Physical Plan
- Reconnecting the Central Forest Spine
- Engaging landowners and businesses to provide spaces for wildlife to the range and supplement wildlife habitats
Create A Pahang Wildlife Ranger Unit To Protect The Malayan Tigers
Some efforts to save our Malayan Tigers in Pahang include the creation of a Pahang Wildlife Ranger Unit. These are teams of people who will assist in keeping the number of poaching to zero. The Pahang Wildlife Ranger Unit will comprise of individuals who are not only passionate about the cause to save our tigers, but also people who are experienced in surviving the jungle, are familiar with the surrounding habitat, and equipped with other essential skills that are needed. Their responsibilities include observing and monitoring the behavioral activities of the tigers and any approaching poachers or hunters.
The Pahang Wildlife Ranger Unit is a part of the National Save The Malayan Tiger Campaign by alerting the proper authorities of any poachers they encounter. The Pahang Wildlife Ranger Unit covers a large land area where they will do their surveying activities, taking records of their observations and keeping an eye out for poachers. From this analysis, they can formulate many other methods that can either become a practical obstacle to the poachers or a means to catch them and hand them to the appropriate authorities as punishment for their crimes.
In addition to this, the Pahang state government has also formed the Pahang Wildlife Committee which is formed under the Pahang Biodiversity Enactment 2021. The Regent of Pahang, HRH Tengku Hassanal, advises this committee. The committee oversees all efforts committed toward the recovery of the Malayan Tigers’ population in the state of Pahang.
The leading cause of the dwindling numbers of the Malayan Tigers is that poachers have so heavily targeted them. The poaching of the animals for their bones, meat, and skin has caused the Malayan Tigers’ population to have decreased by 50% within the last ten years. However, the bigger picture is that many of these poachers are working for even bigger wildlife crime syndicates.
Illegal wildlife is an alarmingly lucrative industry, raking in profits of approximately $216 billion annually. It is indeed a criminal industry that is often overlooked. Wildlife crimes include the global trafficking of highly sought-after wildlife, fish, and wood. Amongst those frequently trafficked are our tigers in Pahang. These wildlife crime syndicates devastate many animals, driving them to extinction or near extinction status. It is also destroying affected countries, their economies, and conservation efforts.
Hence, it is vital to undertake active conservation efforts that disrupt the wildlife crime syndicates. If we strengthen inter-agency coordination for targeted and practical actions that can destroy or disrupt existing supportive networks utilized by foreign poachers, the number of Malayan Tigers found in the wild will increase as well.
Additionally, there have been tigers in Thailand that gangs of poachers have targeted. In 2019, after months of investigation, authorities discovered a gang who posed as “sourcing agents” tasked by a leader to collect fresh tiger skeletons and smuggle them back to their bosses. This shows that this syndicate is vast and extensive, and their criminal activities expand to countries all over Asia, not just Malaysia.
Through the formation of inter-agency coordination, we are optimistic about a future where the poaching of Malayan Tigers is eliminated. Members of this wildlife crime task force will include but are not limited to Perhilitan, Royal Malaysian Police, Armed Forces, and Maritime Enforcement Agency, including other NGOs and the private sector. With the might of such esteemed organizations, poachers thinking of poaching tigers may think twice about targeting these beloved animals.
Disrupt The Malayan Tigers Crime Syndicate
Expand Core Areas for Malayan Tigers
Another part of the campaign is to increase the size of the protected areas within the Tekai landscape. By doing this, the established protected areas can add to the Greater Taman Negara core area. This will be in relation to the establishment of the Green Financing Task Force. The Green Financing Task Force will be formed to find financing opportunities to support the creation of new protected areas. The Green Financing Task Force members will include UPEN Pahang, State Legal Advisor, Pahang Corporation, and more. With a larger secure area, this effort may help conserve the number of tigers in Pahang.