In an interview with Eco-Business, NRES secretary-general Dr Ching Thoo Kim said that the ministry had updated its draft bill, the structure of which was revealed last year, to integrate public feedback.
“The previous draft, tabled last year, was without a chapter on adaptation. Then we got a lot of feedback from non-governmental organisations, looked into it, and [decided] this is something we ought to include,” he said.
NRES had published a consultation paper on the draft climate change bill in October 2024, which had included chapters on the setting of national climate targets, establishment of a regulatory entity and development of a national repository on climate.
The draft also outlined rules for carbon trading and the creation of a national climate fund.
Climate Governance Malaysia, the local chapter of the World Economic Forum’s initiative on climate governance, emphasised earlier this year that adaptation should be central to the climate change bill, as it is needed to address Malaysia’s growing vulnerability to extreme weather.
The World Bank has warned that Malaysia will continue to see rising costs of floods, which have exceeded US$200 million a year, if it does not act on climate change.
Civil society groups have also called for provisions to protect Indigenous land rights to be addressed in the bill.
“We are taking a more proactive approach now – we are listening more, [receiving more input] from the outside in,” Ching told Eco-Business on the sidelines of the International Greentech & Eco Products Exhibition & Conference Malaysia (IGEM) last week.
NRES acting minister Johari Abdul Ghani said last week that the tabling of the bill in parliament would be delayed until early next year. Although prime minister Anwar Ibrahim had asked him to table it during the current parliamentary sitting, which ends in November, Johari had asked for more time to engage businesses, in an effort to avoid potential backlash against the bill.
Ahmad Farid Mohammed, undersecretary for climate change at NRES, said at a separate event last week that the bill will outline provisions to subject companies to emissions thresholds and reporting requirements, ahead of the implementation of a planned carbon tax next year.
“But we need to realise that if we want to do carbon taxes, monitoring, reporting and verification [of emissions data] is very important,” he said.
International input
Climate adaptation will be among Malaysia’s key focus areas at COP30, the upcoming United Nations climate change conference in Belém, Brazil, Ching said.
“This COP, we will open our eyes and ears to see what the narrative on adaptation is like at the global level, and we can align our local agenda to that,” he said.
Adaptation is meant to be a central theme of this year’s COP, according to COP30 president André Corrêa do Lago.
Lessons from COP30 will feed into Malaysia’s own national adaptation plan, known as MyNAP, which the government aims to complete by next year, Ching added.
Last year, Malaysia secured US$3 million from the United Nations-backed Green Climate Fund to develop MyNAP.
In a speech at IGEM, Ching said that Malaysia’s climate change legislation will ensure greater protection and resilience for communities against the risks of floods, heat and food insecurity.
“Communities will also be empowered to participate more actively in climate action through new opportunities for green jobs, sustainable livelihoods and local initiatives that make a tangible difference,” he said.
Ching added that the bill marks an important turning point for climate action in Malaysia’s private sector.
“Businesses will have a clearer policy and legal framework to guide investments, opening opportunities for innovation, growth and new markets in the green economy.”
“Companies will also be called upon to demonstrate accountability, to measure and reduce emissions, and to lead in building sustainable supply chains,” he said. “This is an invitation to forge partnerships that scale climate solutions and deliver impact.”
