Sarawak Biodiversity Centre

Sarawak is well-endowed with a diverse wealth of biological resources i.e. biodiversity, that could potentially have unique applications in healthcare, agriculture and industries. Bioprospecting of the biodiversity to discover potential and useful applications very much depends on implementing a highly robust R&D programme involving various scientific tools including biotechnology.

Sarawak has over 36 different indigenous groups which can be broadly categorized into the following groups: Iban, Bidayuh, Orang Ulu, Melanau and Malay. Each of these ethnic groups has inherited a rich array of traditional knowledge from their ancestors, much of which have not been documented.  This knowledge include centuries of practice on how to grow food and to survive in their environment.  Such utilization and management of natural resources by indigenous people, perfected over a period of time is known as traditional knowledge.