KUCHING: A RM1.5-million Bidayuh Heritage Gallery project at the Dayak Bidayuh National Association (DBNA) headquarters is expected to strengthen cultural preservation efforts and further enhance the visibility of Bidayuh identity here.
Minister for Education, Innovation and Talent Development, Datuk Seri Roland Sagah Wee Inn said the Sarawak government had approved funding for the project, which is expected to be completed in 2027.
He said the planned gallery would become another important landmark for the Bidayuh community.
Sagah said discussions involving a committee within the DBNA Exco and the museum department were ongoing to determine the gallery’s content and presentation.
“The gallery, later on, is content. There is a committee on this in the DBNA Exco, and they’ve been having discussions with the museum department as to how it should be done,” he said at the 11th DBNA Triennial General Assembly (TGA) welcoming dinner at the DBNA Headquarters Multipurpose Hall here on Friday night (May 8).
He also highlighted the transformation of the DBNA headquarters over the decades, from a small wooden building in the 1960s to its present facilities, including the multipurpose hall and nine-storey community hostel.
According to Sagah, the development reflected the vision and determination of earlier Bidayuh leaders who secured and retained the association’s 2.45-acre site in Kuching since 1962.
Meanwhile, DBNA president Datuk Ik Pahon Joyik said the gallery project was conceived during preparations for the association’s 70th anniversary celebration last year.
“Finally, it will now become the Bidayuh Heritage Gallery, which the state government has given funding for it,” he said.
Ik Pahon said the initiative formed part of DBNA’s long-term effort to strengthen Bidayuh cultural visibility and heritage preservation in Kuching.
He added that the gallery project also reflected the association’s broader commitment to preserving Bidayuh heritage while ensuring the community remained relevant within the state’s development landscape.
