KOTA BELUD: Pulau Mantanani will soon get a health clinic to cater to the needs of its 1,024 population.
Deputy Health Minister 1 Datuk Dr Noor Azmi Ghazali said the Health Ministry had approved the construction of a health clinic on the island which would be built under the 12th Malaysia Plan.
"This island with a population of 1,024 people really needs a health clinic to make it easier for the residents to get medical treatment without having to go to the mainland of Kota Belud by boat.
"With the health clinic here, it is easier for the Sabah Health Department staff to provide the best service with the available equipment without having to commute from the mainland to this island," he told reporters after visiting Klinik Desa Kampung Payas-Payas in Kota Belud and the Pulau Mantanani clinic site, yesterday.
The popular diving spot, which is accessible by boat about an hour away from the Kuala Abai Jetty in Kota Belud, is located about 80km north of Kota Kinabalu.
Noor Azmi also noted the need to upgrade several dilapidated rural clinics he visited around Kota Belud district and hoped it would be resolved soon.
During the visit, Noor Azmi also had the opportunity to inspect the vaccination progress at Pulau Mantanani and saw 18 people getting the vaccine, 14 of which were booster doses.
Accompanying him were the state Health director Datuk Dr Rose Nani Mudin and Health deputy director-general (Research and Technical Support) Datuk Dr Hishamshah Mohd Ibrahim.