KOTA KINABALU: The Works Ministry has issued a wake-up call to all agencies and contractors involved in Sabah’s Pan Borneo Highway after Phase 1A progress fell nearly 9% behind schedule, with Deputy Minister Datuk Seri Dr Ahmad Maslan urging teams to “work overtime” to make up for delays.
As of October 2025, overall construction progress for Phase 1A comprising 15 work packages stood at 85.25% compared with the scheduled 93.96%. Phase 1B, which started recently, recorded 9.49% progress against its target of 13.14%.
Ahmad Maslan said land acquisition, utility relocation and shortages of workers and materials were the main issues affecting progress. He said stronger coordination among the Public Works Department (JKR) Malaysia, Sabah JKR, 35 contractors, consultants and related agencies was needed to recover lost time.
“This is a mega federal project for the people of Sabah. I hope everyone involved will work hard to follow the schedule and complete it as soon as possible,” he said after visiting Work Package 7 from Inanam to Sepanggar Friday (Nov 7), which has reached 89% completion.
Ahmad Maslan being briefed on the alignment and progress of the Pan Borneo Highway project by Public Works Department (JKR) officers.
He added that some contractors in other federal projects had proven that tight management and longer working hours could help deliver results faster.
“I’m not expecting three shifts a day, but if we can work 10 to 12 hours instead of eight, it can speed things up,” he said.
Ahmad Maslan said Sabah’s progress still lagged behind Sarawak’s Pan Borneo Highway, which is almost complete, due to technical and administrative challenges. However, he believed better planning and manpower management could close the gap.
He said a special monitoring committee led by the ministry’s secretary-general Datuk Seri Azman Ibrahim was tracking the project’s progress monthly to ensure timely delivery.
