Zainal Abidin Abdullah takes over as STIDC general manager

KUCHING: Malaysian Timber Council (MTC) chairman Zainal Abidin Abdullah, 54, has taken over as Sarawak Timber Industry Development Corporation (STIDC) general manager effective yesterday.

He succeeds Datu Hashim Bojet, who retired Monday.

“I am honoured for this great privilege to take on this new role amid the challenging time for the timber industry particularly in terms of raw materials and market accessibility apart from regulatory pressure from the European Union’s Deforestation Regulation (EUDR), among others.

“I look forward to working with STIDC’s management in addressing these issues meticulously and innovatively for the benefit of our stakeholders and at the same time focusing on environmental, social and governance principles in the timber industry,” he said in a statement yesterday.

Zainal said he hopes to pursue the legacy of his predecessors in driving the sustainability of the timber industry in consonance with the Post Covid-19 Development Strategy (PCDS) 2030 to transform Sarawak into a high income and developed state.

“This augurs well with the tagline ‘Sarawak Maju Makmur’,” he said.

In his brief remarks, Hashim said STIDC is excited to have Zainal join the corporation to pursue its goals.

“His excellent leadership skills would be beneficial in driving sustainability in the pursuit of a vibrant timber industry in Sarawak,” said Hashim.

Zainal, who has over 30 years of experience in the forestry and timber sectors, brings extensive knowledge in strategic planning for the development of the sectors in consonance with national policies.

He started his career as a forest officer for the Sarawak Forest Department in 1992 and was seconded to Sarawak Forestry Corporation Sdn Bhd (SFC) as area manager in 2003.

He held several positions at SFC including security and asset protection manager, revenue manager, and regional manager before becoming deputy general manager in June 2018.

During his tenure at SFC, Zainal played a leadership role in formulating strategies related to enforcement, ensuring compliance with forest ordinances, and national parks regulations.

He was also instrumental in assessing, collecting, and enforcing payment of royalties, fees, and other levies chargeable under these ordinances.

With his knowledge in sustainable forest management, forestry development, reforestation, rehabilitation, and forest produce, he was engaged to draft the Forestry and Timber Industry Masterplan for Sarawak in 2019.

In February the same year, Zainal became the general manager of Harwood Timber Sdn Bhd (HTSB), a wholly owned subsidiary of STIDC.

He played a significant role in drafting a strategic masterplan besides preparing and implementing performance metrics through a Balanced Scorecard (BSC) for HTSB.

Effective April 11 this year, he was also appointed as MTC chairman.

Zainal holds a bachelor’s degree in forestry from Universiti Putra Malaysia (UPM) and Corporate Master in Business Administration (Economics and Finance) from Universiti Malaysia Sarawak (Unimas).