Chinese pandas over local wildlife? Malaysians debate cost of hosting a new pair

As pandas Fu Wa and Feng Yi return to China after more than a decade in Malaysia, the public is questioning the cost of hosting a fresh pair of the endangered bears – money which could be spent instead on protecting endangered local wildlife and supporting the beleaguered national zoo.

Malaysia, home to an estimated 170,000 species across its ancient rainforests, rivers and seas, is one of only 17 “megadiverse countries” labelled as such by US-based environmental organisation Conservation International for housing most of the Earth’s species.

More than 1,100 animal species in Malaysia are listed as threatened, from the Malayan tiger and tapir to the Bornean orangutan.

Pandas Fu Wa and Feng Yi, who arrived in 2014 on loan from Beijing as part of their “panda diplomacy” programme, were hailed as a conservation success, producing three cubs over seven years – a rare feat for pandas in captivity.

Housed in a purpose-built, climate-controlled enclosure at Kuala Lumpur’s National Zoo, the pair drew steady crowds but also criticism over maintenance costs.