Bako National Park (ASEAN Heritage Park)

Bako National Park occupies a strategically material position within the regional conservation ecosystem as a designated ASEAN Heritage Park in September 2025. This status functions as a formal endorsement of the park’s high conservation value, reflecting its alignment with ASEAN’s shared environmental priorities, particularly in biodiversity protection, ecosystem representativeness, and sustainable site governance. From a regional policy and stewardship perspective, the designation elevates Bako as a benchmark site within the ASEAN conservation portfolio.

As Sarawak’s oldest national park, Bako operates as a compact yet high-yield conservation asset, delivering significant ecological outcomes within a limited spatial footprint. The park integrates multiple ecosystem types—ranging from lowland dipterocarp forest and mangroves to peat swamp, kerangas heath forest, and rugged coastal cliffs—within a single management unit. This concentration of ecological diversity positions Bako as a “high-value, multi-asset landscape,” generating disproportionate conservation and educational returns relative to its size and reinforcing its strategic relevance in protected area portfolio management.

From a biodiversity and species conservation standpoint, the park functions as a critical habitat for a wide spectrum of flora and fauna, including endemic and threatened species of regional and global significance. Bako is internationally associated with its proboscis monkey population, alongside long-tailed macaques, silvered langurs, bearded pigs, monitor lizards, and over 190 bird species. This biological capital directly supports ASEAN Heritage Park criteria, particularly in safeguarding genetic diversity, maintaining ecosystem integrity, and ensuring long-term species viability.

From a visitor engagement and experiential delivery perspective, Bako offers a comprehensive, end-to-end nature experience supported by robust on-site infrastructure. An extended-stay approach is strategically recommended to maximise wildlife encounter probability, supported by overnight chalet accommodation, guided night walks, and visitor amenities including an education centre, information facilities, cafeteria, and interpretive trails. The park’s 18 colour-coded trails provide scalable engagement options—from gentle walks to full-day hikes—while iconic coastal features, pitcher plant habitats, and vantage points such as Telok Paku, Telok Delima, Pandan Kecil Beach, and Lakei Island collectively enhance Bako’s value proposition as a high-impact ecotourism and conservation education destination.