Our 57-year-old national zoo was able to sustain itself through ticket sales prior the lockdown, however, poor ticket sales and lack of donations had put the zoo in a financial pickle.
The matter became worst when ticket sales stopped completely because of the Movement Control Order (MCO) imposed by the government in order to curb the spread of Covid-19.
It only had 3 months of funds allocated by the Malaysian Zoological Society (MSZ) enough to feed the animals.
Zoo Negara initiated the Adopt An Animal campaign where people could virtually adopt animals – complete with an e-certificate – which will indirectly fund the upkeep of the zoo.
Thanks to the Malaysians generosity, the zoo managed to collect close to RM1 million donations.
“We have received 20,000 emails and opened 8,000 so far. Only one bank donated RM30,000. Other than that, the money is from ordinary Malaysians donating amounts ranging from RM10 to RM50,” said Zoo Negara’s deputy president Rosly@Rahmat Ahmat Lana.
He also added that the zoo received donations from outside the country like the U.S., Italy, and China. Even students donated some of their money to feed the animals.
According to him, the highest donation from an individual was RM3,000.
He said these personal contributions would go “a long way in running the zoo”.
According to Rosly, the zoo which houses over 4,000 animals, requires an operating cost of RM12,000 a day, which cost roughly RM350,000 a month.
Those who wish to donate to the zoo can do so at https://www.zoonegaramalaysia.my/adopt.html.
Source : FMT