Kunak
Encyclopedia
Kunak is a small town located in Tawau Division
, east coast of Sabah
in Malaysia. It was formerly a sub-district administered under the Lahad Datu District Office, but achieved its status as a full district on 1 June, 1981.
Its population was estimated at 48,571 in 2000. The population is mainly Bajau
and Bugis
, (See Bugis of Sabah
).
There is also a sizeable Chinese population,involved in the running of most shops in the town. Many are also landowners who cultivate oil palms.
A resettlement scheme for Cocos Islanders is situated a few kilometres away, near Giram Oil Palm Estate (Golden Hope Berhad).
A jetty is situated about 5 km from the town, in an area named Pengkalan Kunak. A single road lined by wooden shophouses (possibly a squatter colony) leads to the jetty and wet market.
In 2002, a 76-bed government hospital was built in the town. At around the same time,a new highway linking Kunak to the town of Semporna was also opened.
Tawau Division
Tawau Division is one of the five administrative sub-divisions of Sabah, east Malaysia, on the island of Borneo. It occupies a total of 14,905 square kilometers or 20% of Sabah's territory...
, east coast of Sabah
Sabah
Sabah is one of 13 member states of Malaysia. It is located on the northern portion of the island of Borneo. It is the second largest state in the country after Sarawak, which it borders on its southwest. It also shares a border with the province of East Kalimantan of Indonesia in the south...
in Malaysia. It was formerly a sub-district administered under the Lahad Datu District Office, but achieved its status as a full district on 1 June, 1981.
Its population was estimated at 48,571 in 2000. The population is mainly Bajau
Bajau
The Bajau or Bajaw , also spelled Bajao, Badjau, Badjaw, or Badjao, are an indigenous ethnic group of Maritime Southeast Asia...
and Bugis
Bugis
The Bugis are the most numerous of the three major linguistic and ethnic groups of South Sulawesi, the southwestern province of Sulawesi, Indonesia's third largest island. Although many Bugis live in the large port cities of Makassar and Parepare, the majority are farmers who grow wet rice on the...
, (See Bugis of Sabah
Bugis of Sabah
The Bugis people are one of the ethnic groups of Sabah, Malaysia. The population is mainly concentrated on the east coast of Sabah, especially the districts within the Tawau Division...
).
There is also a sizeable Chinese population,involved in the running of most shops in the town. Many are also landowners who cultivate oil palms.
A resettlement scheme for Cocos Islanders is situated a few kilometres away, near Giram Oil Palm Estate (Golden Hope Berhad).
A jetty is situated about 5 km from the town, in an area named Pengkalan Kunak. A single road lined by wooden shophouses (possibly a squatter colony) leads to the jetty and wet market.
In 2002, a 76-bed government hospital was built in the town. At around the same time,a new highway linking Kunak to the town of Semporna was also opened.