LETTER | Tourism industry in dire need of life support
Modified5:12 am
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LETTER | There have been many regular reports of tourism industry leaders reminding the government of the importance of our local tourism industry, which in 2019 contributed 15.5 percent to our economy and employed 3.6 million people or 23.6 percent of our nation’s workforce.
But so far, there had been no workable solutions that could benefit the entire tourism industry, given that it encompasses many sectors and overlaps many other industries.
Moreover, inflated tourism statistics include leisure activities that have nothing to do with any tourism business.
For example, the gross value added of all tourism industries was a whopping RM240.2 billion in 2019, and this included inbound, domestic, and outbound tourism expenditures. The largest contributor was domestic tourism expenditure with RM103.2 billion.
A DBKL officer pasting a closure notice on a premises involved in activities not permissible under the licence.
MANY businesses in Kuala Lumpur’s city centre have either closed down or are on the verge of collapsing due to the impact of the Covid-19 pandemic.
They include food establishments, retail shops and service industries.
Particularly hard hit are budget hotels, massage centres and reflexology outlets which have only been allowed to reopen on March 5 following the conditional movement control order.
In such circumstances, illicit activities like prostitution has reared their ugly head on an even larger scale than before.
Kuala Lumpur City Hall (DBKL) said syndicates are now offering prostitution services at establishments like budget hotels as well as massage and reflexology outlets.
MELAKA: Close to 50% of tourism players in the historic state have wound up, based on the number of membership renewals with the Malaysian Association of Tour and Travel Agents (MATTA) for this year.
MATTA Melaka Chapter chairman Goh Hock Gin said only about 40 of 80 tourism players had renewed their memberships for 2021, indicating that half the industry is no longer in business.
“This is a sad state of affairs for the tourism industry and we need the state government to look into our plight, ” he said in an interview on Monday (Feb 22).
Goh said most of those still active had also not resumed operations because interstate and interdistrict travel are still not allowed during the conditional movement control order.
/ Posted on 3 February, 2021 15:39
More than 40 per cent of budget hotels in Malaysia are on the verge of closing due to the ban on interstate travel coupled with the nearly year-long closure of the country’s border to foreign tourists.
Malaysia’s government on Tuesday extended by two weeks the country’s full second lockdown until February 18, as the country battles a surge in Covid-19 infections that has pushed the cumulative total past 200,000 cases.
More budget hotels face closures without government aid as Malaysia extends lockdown
Malaysia Budget Hotel Association (MyBHA) national deputy president, Sri Ganesh Michiel, said the association is preparing a letter of appeal to the Ministry of Tourism, Arts and Culture Malaysia to act fast on all issues that pose a threat to the survival of budget hotels in Malaysia. The document is expected to be sent out by next week.
Hotels in Malaysia are expected to lose all revenue streams with the implementation of another movement control order which restricts interstate travel. Hotels in Malaysia are expected to lose all revenue streams with the implementation of another movement control order which restricts interstate travel.
Malaysian Association of Hotels (MAH) chief executive officer Yap Lip Seng said while the MCO is necessary, it will do further damage to the tourism and hospitality industry. With the implementation of restrictions based on MCO implementations, businesses are again expected lose all revenue streams, especially for tourism industry when all interstate travels are now restricted, he said.