This study would not have been possible without the cooperation of the Department of Fisheries Malaysia. I would like to thank Dato' Mohd. Mazlan Jusoh, Director-General of Fisheries, for his support. Grateful thanks are also extended to Mr Lui Yean Pong, former Head, Resource Management Branch and Encik Ahmad Hazizi Aziz, Fisheries Officer (Resource Management), Resource Management Branch. Mr Kevin Hiew Wai Phang, Head, Marine Parks Branch, kindly granted permission for use of the facilities at Pulau Payar Marine Park and offered logistical support.
Support while in the field is also gratefully acknowledged. Thanks especially to Encik Salehan Lamin, former Director, Department of Fisheries Kedah/Perlis; Encik Suhaimy Sulong, Head, Pulau Payar Marine Park and all the staff of the Park. Encik Faudzi Saad deserves a special mention for helping in the coral reef surveys.
Grateful thanks to Encik Ibrahim Salleh, Director, Fisheries Research Institute and Encik Zainuddin Ilias, Fisheries Research Institute, for information generously provided.
Dr Kee-Chai Chong, Programme Coordinator, Bay of Bengal Programme and Ms Donna J. Nickerson, Coastal Zone Management Adviser, Bay of Bengal Programme, are both thanked for their support, guidance and encouragement throughout the project.
At WWF Malaysia, thanks are gratefully extended to Dr Isabelle Louis, Deputy Executive Director, who commented constructively on the draft manuscript and was a constant source of ideas. Thanks also to Encik Hymeir Kamaruddin, and his wife, Puan Zuraidah Abdullah, for their hospitality while I was in Alor Setar. For help with the questionnaire database, the services of Ms Jane Tan and Ms Khoo Ming Ghee are gratefully acknowledged. Cik Noor Liza Ahmad Zahari kindly translated the Executive Summary into Bahasa Melayu.
For her help in conducting the questionnaire surveys and inputting data into the database, Raja Ainun Shafina Raja Ahmad Sheridan is sincerely thanked. Thanks also to Mr Nathaniel Spring for graciously undertaking the multiple tasks of conducting questionnaire surveys, helping with the coral reef surveys, inputting data into the database, analyzing the reef data and helping with the report writing.
The assistance of Mr David Yap is gratefully acknowledged for translating the questionnaires used in the surveys into Japanese.
A big thank you also goes out to all the dive and tour operators at Pulau Payar Marine Park for all their cooperation and help.
For financial support, the following are gratefully thanked:
FAO Bay of Bengal Programme for Integrated Coastal Fisheries Management
United Nations Development Programme
Malaysian Wildlife Conservation Foundation
