Forests for People

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ox-bow lake restoration projects that KOPEL has been

able to obtain from relevant Government agencies.

The ultimate aim is to create a sense of hope

for a sustainable future for the people of the

LowerKinabatangan. KOPEL was formed to coordi-

nate and amalgamate a number of separate village

ecotourism associations such as MESCOT, Miso Walai

Homestay, Mayo do Talud Boat Service, Wayon Tokou

Nature Guide Service, MESCOT Culture Group, Tulun

Tokou Handicrafts Association and Tungog Rainforest

Eco Camp. These activities are all serviced by local

villagers. The Floodplain Forest Habitat Rehabilitation

and Wetland Lake Rehabilitation programmes provide

additional job opportunities for KOPEL members. As

a result, from an initial 110 members in 2003 and an

administrative team of seven, KOPEL had expanded to

400 memberships by 2011.

CBFET at Batu Puteh is rising in popularity and provides

tourist income and green jobs to local households. Over

the 10-year period since implementation, rates have risen

at an average rate of 175 per cent per annum, growing

from 176 visitors in 2000 to more than 3,000 in 2010.

There are two main categories of visitors, the first of which

is group-inclusive tourists (GIT), who commonly make

advance bookings to visit and participate in homestay

and conservation activities. This is the main target and

is preferred by the KOPEL administration, because the

social and cultural sustainability and gives local people the opportu-

nity to participate.

These components have to be organized on the

basis of transparent cooperative governance by enacting a knowledge

network drawing on the experience and wisdom of a wide range of

key individuals, including village leaders, external non-governmental

organizations (NGOs), consultants, advisors and volunteers.

Conflict

resolution procedures are put in place and the legitimacy and accept-

ance of the governance structure ensures that community members

are committed to well-defined roles and responsibilities.

Ecotourism at Batu Puteh is managed by KOPEL (an acronym for

Koperasi Pelancongan or ‘Ecotourism Cooperative’). Active since

July 2003, KOPEL serves the community in the villages of Batu

Puteh, Mengaris, Perpaduan and Singgah Mata.

The community of Batu Puteh is like many poor, isolated, indigenous

rural communities in Sabah,whose traditional reliance on the rainfor-

est for food, medicines, daily commodities and trade with the outside

world has been displaced by the loss of forests and cultural heritage

and a cash-driven lifestyle. KOPEL was set up to reverse the losses, to

capitalize on ancient indigenous and traditional knowledge and culture

and to create economic value and appreciation of the rainforests.

The local community members of KOPEL initially looked to

CBFET to generate a reliable source of income and take them

out of poverty. By 2010, ecotourism had become as important an

economic activity to the villagers as oil palm growing. Local commu-

nities benefit from KOPEL, firstly in terms of ecotourism services

that provide sustainable incomes and secondly as a result of work

allocated to members of cooperatives for forest rehabilitation and

The eco-camp at Batu Puteh provides visitors with accommodation within the natural

forest environment

Located within the Batu Puteh enclave is the historic archaeological

site of Batu Tuluq

Image: Mohd Shahwahid