Initial Status Review of Sapangar Bay Container Port in Malaysia

Sapangar Bay, Malaysia — PEMSEA in partnership with the German International Cooperation (GIZ) conducted an Initial Status Review (ISR) of Sapangar Bay Container Port (SBCP) from 3-4 March 2011. SBCP is one of the pilot ports identified by Malaysia for the "Sustainable Ports Development in the ASEAN" project and is positioned as the premier trans-shipment hub for the Brunei Darussalam-Indonesia-Malaysia-Philippines East ASEAN Growth Area (BIMP-EAGA).

 

The objectives of the ISR are to review performance and status of safety, health and environmental (SHE) management and to identify bottlenecks and deficiencies of existing systems and procedures. Another objective of the review is to develop recommendations for the participating ports for the development of action plans oriented towards the improvement of SHE management at the port.

 

During the ISR for SBCP, document reviews, site walk-throughs, and interviews were conducted in relation to the port's quality, safety, health, and environmental management systems. The specialist from PEMSEA as well as the consultants from GIZ provided the management of SBCP with the recommendations for the improvement of the port's system and the process for establishing a Port Safety, Health and Environmental Management System (PSHEMS).

 

The management of SBCP and its parent corporation, Sabah Ports Sdn. Bhd expressed their interest to establish the PSHEMS and follow the approach recommended by PEMSEA. The port manager, Mr. Muyao Garudin, recognized that although there are existing international standards on quality, safety, health, and the environment, there is no international standard specifically geared towards port operations. The management of SBCP also expressed its gratitude to PEMSEA and GIZ for its consideration to extend technical assistance to SBCP for the development of its PSHEMS.

 

The German International Cooperation (GIZ) was formerly known as GTZ or the German Technical Cooperation.