KUALA LUMPUR, July 30 — The RM191 million Sarawak River Integrated River Basin Development Project will be delayed until 2019, said the Ministry of Economic Affairs.

The project is one of 22 approved, totalling RM529 million, in the third rolling plan of the 11th Malaysia Plan (11MP). 

"This move is in line with instructions from the Finance Ministry to delay projects where letters of acceptance have not been issued,” said the Economics Affairs Ministry in a written reply to a question raised in the Dewan Rakyat today by Datuk Seri Dr Wan Junaidi Tuanku Kaafar (PBB-Santubong) who sought clarification on why flood mitigation projects for Sarawak were suspended. 

Besides the Sarawak river project, one project, the RM100 million Sibu Flood Mitigation Plan Phase 3, approved in the second rolling plan of the 11MP, was identified as a project that must be evaluated by a ministry-level contract coordination panel (CCP).

The ministry-level CCP was tasked to evaluate all contracts with less than 15 per cent completion to determine if the contract should be cancelled, taking into consideration the reimbursement to be borne by the government. — Bernama