Leong says allocation for tourism sector in Budget 2023 not enough as the industry is still recovering.
TOURISM Johor plans to attract more tourists from China by having direct flights from five of the cities there to the Senai International Airport.
Tourism Johor director Suhairi Hashim said a delegation led by Tourism, Arts, and Culture Minister Datuk Seri Tiong King Sing was expected to go to China in May to discuss this.
“We have requested direct flights from Hong Kong, Shanghai, Tianjin, Jiangmen and Guangzhou to Senai. We will raise this suggestion during the trade mission.
“Tourism products that we plan to promote to people in China are island activities in Mersing, popular shopping spots and other family-friendly attractions,” said Suhairi when contacted by StarMetro.
He said this move was in line with their target of increasing international tourist arrivals this year from five million previously to eight million.
Suhairi hopes China’s opening of its borders will translate to more tourism activities in Johor.“We are happy that China has reopened its international borders. We hope this will translate into more tourism activities in Malaysia, especially in Johor,” he said.
Suhairi said Tourism Johor had prepared a line-up of large-scale events this year, which began with hosting the Nusantara Music Festival in February that focused on local food, culture and fashion.
“Then we have the Majestic Johor Festival, the Johor International Food Festival, Kembara Mahkota Johor, the Mersing Water Festival and Dive Johor,” he said.
He highlighted that the focus was also on promoting health tourism to the people of Surabaya and Batam in Indonesia.
He was responding to questions on the RM250mil allocation announced by Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim to promote the tourism sector.
Johor Tourist Guides Association (JTGA) president Jimmy Leong said the amount allocated to host international events in Malaysia was minimal as marketing, promotion and sponsoring such events could be expensive on a global level.
“As industry players, we expect more funds and tax cuts as well as funds to reskill and upskill the workforce, given that we are still in the midst of economic recovery.
“The tourism industry has expressed great disappointment in the amount allocated,” he said.
Leong said the “first to be hit, last to recover” tourism industry deserved a much bigger portion of the budget.
“Industry players have made known to the government the constraints we are going through.
“These include the need for digitisation, moratorium, the reduction of tourism taxes and even the reduction of utility bills,” he added.
