Poni Divers in collaboration with the Department of Fisheries at the Ministry of Primary Resources and Tourism deployed its 100th reef ball into the ocean to mark the commencement of the Ocean Week Brunei at the Department of Fisheries Jetty at Serasa Beach yesterday.
Since July 2023, the reef ball programme has deployed over 70 reef balls to the sea. With the launch yesterday, an additional 30 more reef balls makes the total to 100th reef ball deployed. All 30 reef balls were deployed to Pelong Rock, facilitated by three boats and 10 divers.
High Commissioner of Australia to Brunei Darussalam Luke Arnold, Ambassador of France to Brunei Darussalam Bernard Regnauld-Fabre and High Commissioner of Canada to Brunei Darussalam Ambra Dickie were present at the launching.
Poni Divers Chief Executive Officer and Poni Foundation founder Mohd Tahsin Wong bin Abdullah in his opening speech said Ocean Week Brunei aims to bring together businesses, the government, organisations and schools to discuss marine conservation challenges and solutions, locally and globally. It also aims to inspire the next generation of ocean guardians and to equip them with the skills to build a sustainable future for the blue economy of Brunei Darussalam.
The week ahead promises an array of activities with a youth talk on June 3, a community marine conservation workshop on June 4, following with Brunei’s largest coral planting event Big Blue Hope on June 5, the Ocean Sustainability Conference on June 6 and the World Ocean Day main event on June 8, followed with the Coastal Marvel Beach Cleanup on June 9.
The event’s objective is to catalyse meaningful dialogues on marine conservation within Brunei and beyond, introduce innovative solutions and technologies to the local context, and empower Brunei’s youth with skills to effect positive change. “We want to get everyone talking about marine conservation in Brunei and around the world. We want to bring in the latest solutions and technology to Brunei. And most importantly, we want to make sure the youth in Brunei can learn skills that can make positive impact,” he added.
Poni Divers also launched two dive packages for international clientele and diver tourists to expand Poni’s conservation diver programmes and to increase green tourism to Brunei with support from Brunei Tourism in conjunction with the launch.
The first dive package offers a four-day-three-night programme, comprising four dives including two reef guru conservation dives and two dives (reef ball deployment and coral planting) while the six-day-five-night package comprises eight dives including four reef guru conservation dives and two dives (reef ball deployment and coral planting) and two coral monitoring dives.
Acknowledgment was extended to the sponsors of the event, including Baiduri Bank, the Australian High Commission in Brunei Darussalam, Bank Islam Brunei Darussalam, Progresif Sdn Bhd, Tyne Solutions, Brunei Shell Petroleum Company Sdn Bhd, Armada Properties, Brunei LNG Sdn Bhd, Anson International Sdn Bhd and Brunei Gas Carriers, as well as media partners Borneo Bulletin, Media Permata, Kristal Media, Radio Television Brunei and Biz Brunei, along with education partner Laksamana College of Business. T-shirts were sponsored by Cerita Fabrikku Sdn Bhd. – Adib Noor
