Padawan municipality

Not to be confused with Padawan subdistrict.

The Padawan municipality is a collective name given to a subset of the Kuching District area which is not administered locally by the Kuching South City Council and the Kuching North City Hall, formerly known as Kuching Rural district. It has an area of 1771.3  km², covering the suburbs of the Kuching Proper subdistrict and Padawan subdistrict.^[2] The area is currently administered by the local government named Padawan Municipal Council, based in Kota Padawan, located at 10th mile (16 km) from Kuching city centre.^[3]

Padawan municipality
Municipality
The Padawan Municipal Council building
Flag Seal
Motto(s):  Cekap Bersih Makmur (Efficient, Clean, and Prosperous)
Padawan municipality Location in Malaysia
Coordinates: 1°33′0″N 110°20′7″E
Country	Malaysia
State	Sarawak
Division	Kuching Division
District	Kuching District
First settled	Circa AD 600s (7th century)[1]
Incorporation (Municipality)	1 August 1996
Government
• Type	Local government
• Chairman	Cr. Tan Kai
Area
• Padawan municipality	1,771.3 km2 (683.9 sq mi)
Population  (2024)
• Padawan municipality	264,590
Time zone	UTC+8 (MST)
• Summer (DST)	Not observed
Postal code	93050 KUCHING (Matang Jaya, Sejijak, and Telaga Air) 93250 KUCHING (Penrissen, Batu Kawah, Kota Sentosa, and Kota Padawan)
International dialling code prefix	+6082 (landline only)
Vehicle registration plate prefix	QA and QK (for all vehicles except taxis) HQ (for taxis only)
Website	www.mpp.gov.my

  Padawan Municipal Council (MPP) denotes the area of Padawan municipality

Etymology

The origin of the name "Padawan" came from the combination of Bidayuh words namely Padja and Birawan. There is a story of a Bidayuh village elder named Kinyau stayed in an area named Sibanyai 900 years ago. One day, he discovered white beads which has mystical healing power and they called it Birawan. These beads can also bring peace, prosperity, and tranquility to the area. The village elder has an eldest son named Padja. Therefore, the village elder decided to rename the area as "Padawan" in memory of his son and the mystical beads.^[4]

Areas

Kota Padawan

Kota Padawan street view.

Kota Padawan recreational park was completed in November 2021.^[5]

Batu Kawa

Main article: Batu Kawa

Phase 4 of Batu Kawa Riverbank park, which features children playground facilities was completed in June 2022. Phase 5 construction of the park, which includes riverbank protection was started in the same month.^[6]

Kota Sentosa

Mile 7 flyover over a traffic junction along Kuching-Serian road was opened to public in July 2022.^[7]

Matang

Kubah National Park is located within the Matang area.^[8] Matang Wildlife Centre is located within the national park.^[9]

Semenggoh

Semenggoh Nature Reserve was established on 20 February 2000. It houses Sarawak Forestry Department's botanical research centre, seed bank and nursery, Semenggoh Wildlife Centre, and Sarawak Biodiversity Centre. Rajah Charles Brooke Memorial Hospital which was a former leprosy settlement during the Brooke's era, is located nearby the nature reserve.^[10]

List of attractions

Tourist attractions

Padawan municipal area has many tourist attraction spots, namely:

• Annah Rais Longhouse
• Pelaman Dunuk Longhouse
• Bunuk Longhouse
• Batu Kawah Riverbank Park
• Sumiran Eco Park & Resort
• Borneo Happy Farm, Batu Kawah
• Kubah National Park
• Semenggoh Wildlife Centre
• Pitcher Plant And Wild Orchid Garden
• Kota Padawan Recreational Park
• Kampung Telaga Air
• Teng Bukap Blue Pool
• Borneo Highland Resort
• Susung Waterfall, Padawan
• Gareg Waterfall, Padawan
• Tanju Waterfall, Padawan
• Assum Waterfall, Padawan
• De'remin Sapit (Sapit Hill), Padawan
• Sebarau Waterfall, Padawan
• Barung Waterfall, Padawan
• Bung Buran (Mount Buran), Padawan
• Sunrise View Village Stay, Kampung Sapit, Padawan

See also

• Kuching