KUCHING, April 1 — The Sarawak government will have a meeting with the Consulate General of Indonesia here on Monday to discuss the reopening of the state’s land borders with the republic.

Deputy Premier of Sarawak Datuk Douglas Uggah Embas said Sarawak will present its standard operating procedure (SOP) proposal at the meeting.

He said the proposed SOP needed the agreement of both sides for it to be implemented.

"We will discuss with Indonesia; we have two categories of travellers — the first, tourists and the second, frequent commuters in the form of transporters carrying goods.

"That’s the direction of our discussion with Indonesia, to enable trade in the Tebedu and Biawak area (bordering Indonesia) to commence. There was a lot of trade taking place there before (pre-Covid-19),” he told reporters after visiting the Kuching International Airport on the first day of border reopening here today.

On March 8, Prime Minister Datuk Seri Ismail Sabri Yaakob announced that the country’s borders would be reopened on April 1 in line with the country’s plan to enter the transition period to the endemic phase of Covid-19.

Uggah said the Immigration, Customs, Quarantine and Security Complex (ICQS) in Tebedu was reopened today although the SOP with Indonesia has yet to be finalised.

He said the border with Brunei will remain partially shut and will be opened on April 15. — Bernama