Malaysia is urging ASEAN member states to strengthen collective action against the risk of transboundary haze as prolonged dry conditions drive a rise in hotspot activity across parts of the region.
Natural Resources and Environmental Sustainability Minister Datuk Seri Arthur Joseph Kurup said countries should step up monitoring of high-risk areas, strengthen hotspot surveillance, enforce open-burning controls and maintain firefighting readiness.
He said Malaysia conveyed the call in an official message to ASEAN Secretary-General Dr Kao Kim Hourn yesterday.
Although fire incidents remain under control within individual countries, Arthur said the rising risk of transboundary haze requires greater regional vigilance.
“Early interventions, accurate information exchange and close regional coordination are fundamental” to tackling the haze effectively, he said in a statement today.
He added that prolonged dry conditions in southern ASEAN had contributed to increased hotspot activity and haze. The situation could worsen as the El Niño phenomenon is expected to strengthen gradually in the coming months.
Malaysia also welcomed the ASEAN Secretariat’s role as the Interim ASEAN Coordinating Centre for Transboundary Haze Pollution Control in sharing information and coordinating preparedness measures under the ASEAN Agreement on Transboundary Haze Pollution.
