Malaysia’s plantations and commodities minister Johari Abdul Ghani will take over the duties and functions of the minister for Natural Resources and Environmental Sustainability Ministry (NRES), effective immediately.
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Prime minister Anwar Ibrahim had informed the Cabinet on Wednesday that he had agreed to the reallocation of duties, said Malaysia’s chief secretary to the government Shamsul Azhar Abbas in a statement today.
This move follows the resignation of Nik Nazmi Nik Ahmad as NRES minister, which was effective 4 July. Nik Nazmi resigned at the end of May after losing his deputy presidency in internal elections for Parti Keadilan Rakyat, the political party helmed by prime minister Anwar.
Johari has held the post of plantations and commodities minister since late 2023, succeeding current deputy prime minister and energy transition and public utilities minister Fadillah Yusof. He previously served as deputy finance minister under former prime minister and finance minister Najib Razak, who is currently serving a jail sentence for graft.
At a recent conference, Johari said that Malaysia could turn to palm oil waste as a renewable energy source to replace coal, which the government is aiming to phase out of the country’s energy system by 2044.
Among the ongoing policy developments at NRES is the preparation of Malaysia’s National Climate Change Bill, which Nik Nazmi had previously planned to table in parliament this year. The ministry is also preparing the country’s first National Adaptation Plan, which was targeted for completion next year.
Nik Nazmi said that NRES is also drafting a carbon market policy, which could include plans to establish a domestic emissions trading scheme. Efforts to implement a carbon tax in 2026 for Malaysia’s hard-to-abate industries, including energy, steel and cement, is being overseen by the finance ministry, also led by Anwar.
