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Transforming the Tourism Sector into a High Income Industry1
I Introduction
Figure 1 Tourism Supply Chain within the 1 Malaysia Supply Chain
Tourism has become so significant in economic and social development today, it is
sometimes known as the invisible export industry is so significant in economic and social
development having been called "invisible export" by economists nowadays. In 2009,
there were 23.6 million tourists arrivals based on the report by the Malaysian Tourism
Board, an increase of 7.2% reported in 2008, i.e. on average an average of 64,000
tourist arrivals daily. This was translated to RM53 billion in total receipts and RM34
billion in total GNI contributions which have developed into a major sector of the
economy the second largest foreign exchange earner after manufacturing. With the
increase in foreign receipts from the tourism sector, this has helped boost Malaysias
foreign exchange reserves. In addition as the tourism sector involves a whole
employment spectrum - in retail, construction, manufacturing and telecommunications,
as well as directly in tourism companies; thus accounts for approximately 23% of the
total labour force that directly or indirectly supports the tourism sector.
Given the contribution of the tourism sector, it has been identified by the Government as
one of growth sectors that contributes significantly to the countrys growth. In order to
maximise the potential of the tourism sector, this paper identifies barriers impeding the
growth of this sector and recommends measures to overcome them.
1This paper is one of many papers prepared by Group A of the National Economic Advisory Council (NEAC) under
the guidance of Tan Sri Andrew Sheng. The paper was reviewed by the NEAC and its recommendations
summarised into NEM Concluding Part Report.
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The 10th Malaysia Plan recognises the importance of the tourism sector which has been
identified as a driver of economic activity that will contribute towards the growth and
distribution of wealth to the economy. The 10 MPs target is to improve Malaysias
position to be within the top 10 in terms of global receipts and increase the sector
contribution by 2.1 times , contributing RM115 billion in receipts by 2015. Key strategies
include catering to the various market segments whilst leveraging on existing tourism
products such as the Penang and Kinabalu Park that has been classified as a UNESCO
Heritage sites. In addition the tourism sector focuses on ecotourism as the country has
a comparative advantage arising from Malaysias natural resource endowment, however
ensuring the quality and sustainability of the tourism products. Arising from this
Malaysia is able to establish and capture a greater share of the global tourism market
especially in ecotourism through domestic and regional partnerships as start up and
running costs can be low compared to many other forms of industry development. The
tourism sector is able to contribute to the 1MSC as the tourism supply chains is a web of
relationships where each supply chain seeks to increase supply and reduce risks and
overall costs for greater value creation as it develops greater integration between
products and quality services along the value chain as it involves many components
such as accommodation, transport etc. (Figure1).
The tourism sector has also been identified by the Performance Management and
Delivery Unit (Pemandu) amongst the twelve National Key Result Areas (NKRAs) which
are national priority areas of focus identified under the Government Transformation
Programme (GTP). The goal of the Tourism NKRA is to formulate initiatives to transform
the nation into a high-income economy though its Economic Transformation Programme
(ETP)
The Pemandu Lab on the tourism sector has identified twelve big Entry Point Projects
(EPPs) which could possibly generate RM28 billion in GNI and create another 200,000
new jobs by 2020. The EPPs are based on 5 travel themes i.e. nature adventure and
culture diversity, family, luxury, events and business related which comprises of
meetings, incentives, conventions and exhibitions (MICE). The success of the EPPs
involves the support from both the private and public sector in funding and supportive
policies from the federal and state government. Such funding would include the
corporate sponsorship from the private sector in maintaining the heritage sites and
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involved in marketing to target growth markets especially Russia, India, China and the
Middle East.
Background
World population is forecast to grow to 8.3 billion2 in 2030, life expectancy is projected to
increase in most of the world, households and families are becoming more diverse, and
migration is changing the face of societies. All these changes will impact upon the types
of tourists, where they originate from, where they travel to, the types of accommodation
they require and the activities they engage in while travelling. As global tourism sector
continues to evolve over the years as tourist behaviours change in the light of intense
competition and changing tourist expectations (e.g. more buying holidays in the online
marketplace) in the tourism industry, Malaysian companies need to form smart
partnerships to ensure market dominance and accelerate entry into new tourism market
opportunities, provide new products including non-conventional products and services to
garner a bigger share of the global tourism market. The World Tourism Organization
(UNWTO) forecasts that international tourism will continue growing at the average
annual rate of 4 % and with the advent of e-commerce, tourism products have become
one of the most traded items on the internet. Tourism products and services have been
made available through intermediaries, although tourism providers (hotels, airlines, etc.)
can sell their services directly. This has put pressure on intermediaries from both on-line
and traditional shops supporting the tourism sector.
More countries are aware of the importance the tourism sector plays in helping ensure
sustainability. It is now seen as one of the pillars for sustainability as it plays a vital role
in generating income foreign exchange earnings, creating jobs, and contribution to tax
revenues; the competition for tourism spending has been increasingly intense. Malaysia
needs to be part of the Global Tourism supply chain as by accessing a wider tourist
market to gain critical mass in a highly competitive and inter-connected world, this will
enhance the value of Malaysias tourism life cycle through improved systems of
organisation, and people, processes and technology that will help generate higher
income and wealth for the nation.
2Joining Forces Collaborative Processes for Sustainable and Competitive Tourism, World Tourism Organization
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The barriers that impede the growth in the tourism sector include the following:
Provision of inappropriate infrastructure or facilities, owing to insufficient
understanding of the specific attractions that appeal to particular types of tourist
(e.g. crowding of chalets within very small areas, trends towards mass tourism atspecialist tourism sites)
Visible environmental damage owing to inappropriate silting of roads, buildings,
accommodation on steep slopes and in high rainfall areas
Limitations of infrastructure for air travel, and differences of opinion over
questions of flight frequency and landing rights (e.g. frequency of flights between
Peninsular Malaysia, Sabah and Sarawak)
Constraints on manpower and training, shortage of training opportunities, and
inadequate opportunities to learn and appreciate the specific requirements of
tourists
Rising prices especially for accommodation due to shortage of hotels
Isolation of the tourism industry from its social obligations, leading to conflicts or
lost opportunities for one or other party, e.g. between tourism developers and
local communities
A major direction to overcome the barriers is to form a smart partnership internally to
benefit from the economies of scale, improve in the flow of information and work
together to create value in the tourism products available to the tourists. In addition
by enabling speedy response to market opportunities by continuously calibrating
tourism products to meet changing trends in domestic and international tourists
profile would enhance brand value of Malaysian tourism product, reputation and
market share.
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Figure 2 Benefits of Smart Partnership
II Need for an Integrated Malaysian Tourism Supply Chain
Figure 3 Tourism Supply Chain
What makes tourism special is that, many of these different products and services are
often supplied by different operators: usually small or medium sized businesses in local
ownership. This makes tourism a highly fragmented and diverse industry and so
coordinated, industry-wide action is difficult to achieve. The influence of tourisms
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demand also extends far beyond traditional tourism companies, into upstream suppliers
like aircraft manufacturers or food producers and into the downstream service providers
for travelers, like retail shops in arts and crafts, laundry etc.
To enable Malaysia to compete on a global scale, Malaysian suppliers of tourismproducts need to raise their competitiveness. Malaysian suppliers in the supply chain
need to collaborate with each other to be able to compete on a global scale rather than
operating in a silo environment. With collaboration it will ensure smooth flow of
information, quick feedback and response to tourism-related issues, transfer of
knowledge and skills leading to better risk management, lower costs, reduced conflicting
situations, improved management and operations and more business opportunities. To
achieve greater value for all Malaysians, tourism supply chain has to function in a
seamless manner with straight-through-delivery where the end-game is each component
of the tourism supply chain will thrive as part of the whole.
Figure 4 Tourism Supply Chain in Silos
III Issues and Recommendations
Infrastructure
Infrastructure remains a critical component in development and growth of the tourism
sector if the full potential of employment generation, export earnings and regional
development effects are to be achieved. In most cases public infrastructure that supports
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the tourism expansion will anyway serve other urban and regional development
purposes. Tourism involves large numbers of visitors from developed countries
travelling by air, sea or land to destinations in emerging countries and vice versa.
Whether it is domestic tourism or international, it involves visiting a destination away
from the area in which one lives and using the services available in that destination.
River transportation should considered as another transportation mode for the tourism
sector as it can be promoted as a tourism product thus creating an opportunity for
visitors to explore the cities through water taxis. Therefore, tourists requirements are for
travel services to reach their destinations is crucial and once there, for services such as
shelter, water, food, sanitation and entertainment is important. To be able to access to
the global supply chain, a good infrastructure is also essential to ensure growth and
distribute the benefits of tourism flows around the economy.
To assist the development of new tourism development, the government needs to focus
on the infrastructure needs and resources outside Kuala Lumpur, whether air transport
or road and rail infrastructure and the basic infrastructure services required by hotels,
restaurants, shops, and recreation facilities (e.g. telecommunications and utilities)
With the growth of technology, it has been acknowledged that an increasing share of
tourism operations and virtually all distribution and sales transactions flows through
telecommunications circuits and the internet. Where telecommunications are monopoly
controlled, there are often restrictions on access, high costs and unreasonable operating
conditions. This in turn limits the potential of market-oriented expansion of the tourism
segment with negative impacts domestically and internationally in terms of cost,
operational efficiency and customer service.
Recommendation
To be able to access to the global supply chain, quality infrastructure is also essential to
diversify the product base, remove bottlenecks, ensure good service and distribute the
benefits of tourism flows around the economy.
To assist the development of new tourism development, the government needs
to focus on the infrastructure needs and resources outside Kuala Lumpur,
whether air or road and rail infrastructure.
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To improve on broadband services as the flow of information is crucial for
efficiency and customer service.
Accessibility
There has been an increasing demand for amount of travellers were happy to use
the likes of budget airlines which are increasingly popular amongst traveller, such as
AirAsia, AirAsiaX, Jetstar and Fire Fly, to reach their destinations and then spend
their money on four and five star accommodation when they got there. Smart
travellers who are travelling long-haul will use their money to ensure their long plane
journey is as comfortable as possible by upgrading or using the most comfortable
airline they can find but will opt for budget accommodation once on the ground.
Malaysia has seen growth in the tourist sector especially in Langkawi Island, Sabah
and Sarawak to name a few which have benefited with the increased landing rights
for foreign airlines e.g. Eva Air, Dragon Air, Cathay Pacific.
Recommendation
(1) The Government should consider opening the skies to more low cost carriers that
will bring in the tourists to Malaysia by offering more landing rights and move
towards an open sky policy modeling against Singapore that has adopted an
open sky policy which has both Tiger Air and Singapore Airlines contributing
towards the countrys growth.
(2) Consider tapping into new segments for AirAsia where MAS does not fly and
current segments that MAS is flying as this will increase passenger volume and
tourists to the country. Based on the Tourism Malaysia data records the
following growth in 2009: Australia (+25%), United Kingdom (+17%), China
(+7%), and Taiwan (+4%) which corresponds when AirAsiaX began operations.
(3) Government should consider expanding the hubs activities to other sectors e.g.cities in South Korea or Japan to Kota Kinabalu as ecotourism is popular
amongst tourist from these two countries
Transportation
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Currently the transportation sector within the country needs to be improved especially
the public transport such as buses, trains and airlines to enable the tourism sector to
grow and support the initiatives outlined in the NKRAs. For example an area in the
transportation sector which is of concern is the operations of taxi services in Malaysia.
Taxis are a great way to get around within cities in Malaysia, whether for custom tours or
general transport services. Taxis in Malaysia, forms part of the integrated transportation
system available to the rakyat and tourists in 2008, there were 57,5213 taxis catering the
Malaysian population of 28 million4 and tourist arrivals of 22 million5 form Malaysian
people need wheelchair accessible taxi Malaysia could retrofit those vehicles for
wheelchair-accessibility.
In Malaysia, most local taxi companies offer a choice of luxury cars, small vans or large
coaches for group. For the tourists, there are various types of taxi services being offered
from the time they land at the domestic and international airports in Malaysian that
ranges from the airport limousine (budget and premier) which is based on a coupon
system. This works fine for the tourists however when they need to hire a taxi to get to
LCCT from the Kuala Lumpur city, flag down any cab they have to be prepared to
negotiate as most taxis will quote a lump sum instead of using the meter as they claim
the higher fare is to cover for the empty trip back since they are not allowed to pick up
passengers in the vicinity of the airport. In addition, outside the city, as well as in other
parts of Malaysia, taxis tend to operate on a fixed rate depending on the distance where
the fares are overcharged. This would lead a bad image of the country when the tourist
shares their experiences in Malaysia.
Despite taxi fares being doubled last August 2009, taxi drivers have been reported to be
overcharging passengers and refusing to use meters. Commercial Vehicle Licensing
Board (CVLB) statistics showed that in the first two weeks of the new year, some 1,000
taxi drivers refused to charge fares using the meters, overcharged or refused to pick up
passengers.
Another issues related to taxis is that the current taxis are do not cater for the physically
disabled, as the disabled finds it challenging when getting on board the taxi. Further,
3Commercial Vehicle Licensing Board 2008 Annual Report
4Development Indicators, World Bank
5Tourism Malaysia
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most taxis may refrain from picking up these passengers as they may be deemed as a
liability as the disabled takes longer time to get on and off the taxis.
River transportation should considered as another transportation mode for the tourism
sector as it can be promoted as a tourism product thus creating an opportunity for
visitors to explore the cities through water taxis. Therefore, tourists requirements are for
travel services to reach their destinations is crucial and once there, for services such as
shelter, water, food, sanitation and entertainment is important.
Table 1: Breakdown of the Various Taxis Classes in Malaysia as at 31 December 2008
Car Rental Car
Rental/Drive
Taxi Airport Limo Premier
Johor 2,331 - 5,113 16 45
Kedah 2,689 - - 11
Kelantan 2,214 - - 5
Melaka 932 1 - 21
N Sembilan 1,061 - 20 12
Pahang 1,779 - - 37
Perak 2,375 - - 15
Perlis 431 - - -
Penang 504 - 216 177
Selangor 1,070 207 424 260
Terengganu 940 - - 12
WP Kuala Lumpur 498 7967 1,904 825
WP Putrajaya 1 - - -
Total According to
class
16,825 8,175 28,521 2,580 1,420
Total 57,521
2008 Annual Report Commercial Vehicle Licensing Board
Recommendation
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(1) To improve the taxi services, the Government may wish to consider increasing the
number of taxis as they are insufficient to cater to the tourists given that the global
tourism is expected to increase by 4% p.a. based on World Tourism Organisation.
(2) Enforcement efforts should increase to reduce the number of recalcitrant taxi
operators that continue to overcharge their customers.
(3) To facilitate an efficient water taxi, however ensure that the safety standards on
water taxis operations are administered e.g. number of passengers, life jackets etc.
Internet Access - Broadband
With the growth of technology, it has been acknowledged that an increasing share of
tourism operations and virtually all distribution and sales transactions flows through
telecommunications circuits and the internet. Where telecommunications are monopoly
controlled, there are often restrictions on access, high costs and unreasonable operating
conditions. This in turn limits the potential of market-oriented expansion of the tourism
segment with negative impacts domestically and internationally in terms of cost,
operational efficiency and customer service.
Recommendation
To be able to access to the global supply chain, quality infrastructure is also essential to
diversify the product base, remove bottlenecks, ensure good service and distribute the
benefits of tourism flows around the economy.
To improve on broadband services as the flow of information is crucial for efficiency
and customer service.
Service providers should continue to improve the information content, IT
infrastructure to meet demands on internet traffic, ensure proper internet security for
online transactions and protect customers information.
Accommodation and Eateries
Depending on the type of tourists visiting Malaysia, their choice of accommodation would
depend on their purpose for visiting Malaysia and their budget. As highlighted earlier, to
support the increase in tourist arrivals, the tourist can opt to pamper themselves with
quality accommodation through established hotel chains available in Malaysia. There
are also budget hotels to cater for the back packers as they travel around Malaysia.
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Based on the latest statistics provided by the Malaysian Hotels Association (MHA)6,
there are a total of 522 hotels registered with them. From the total number of hotels
registered with the MHA, there are a total of 353 hotels with a 3 star status and above
located through Malaysia, with the concentration of hotels located in Kuala Lumpur,
Selangor and Sarawak. To be able to support the Meetings, Incentives, Conferences
and Exhibitions, more quality hotels should be made available especially in major cities
such as Georgetown, Johor Bahru, Sabah, etc. In addition,
Table 2: Occupancy Hotel rates
State 2009 2008 +/-%
Perlis N/A 66 N/A
Kedah 61.99 65.71 -3.72
Penang 61.46 64.67 -3.21
Perak 51.76 52.47 -6.65
Selangor 66.13 67.52 -1.39
Kuala Lumpur F.T 63.83 68.47 -4.64
N. Sembilan 52.49 58.28 -5.79
Malacca 59.69 62.58 -2.89
Johor 56.63 63.07 -6.44
Pahang 78.04 83.13 -5.09
Terengganu 62.39 71.44 -9.05
6To qualify to be a member of the Malaysian Hotel Association, the applicant must have a minimum of 10 rooms.
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State 2009 2008 +/-%
Kelantan 40.76 60.19 -19.43
Sarawak 45.55 57.98 -12.43
Sabah 56.31 70.06 -13.75
Labuan F.T 75.80 80.96 -5.16
Putrajaya F.T 23.07 N/A N/A
Malaysia 60.68 66.32 -5.64
Hotel Associations of Malaysia
Given that the country is targeting to increase the number of tourist arrivals, this will put
pressure on the current accommodation infrastructure that will put pressure on the hotel
rates. However based on the procedure listed on the MAH website, timeline taken for a
hotel is on average 21 months where the approvals are required from at least 26
Ministries, agencies and various authorities, which can a tedious process for the hotel
operator.
To be able to support the hotel industry, the other challenges faced by the hotel
operators are qualified employees ranging from concierge, chamber maids, chefs,
engineers etc. that represents the backbone of the hotel operations. Due to the
shortage of qualified Malaysians, the hotel operators have to source outside of Malaysia
to fill the gaps.
Recommendation
(1) Overlaps in approvals can be placed under one authority e.g. MIDA for the approvalto employ expatriates, visa application for foreign workers, visit passes etc. which is
currently undertaken by MIDA, Immigration Department and Ministry of Home Affairs
to assist in speeding up the application process to increase the number of hotels to
meet future demand.
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(2) Ministry of Tourism together with the Ministry of Higher Education to work together
to develop a tourism training policy that will build a pool of resources for the tourism
sector and continue to support training accreditation programmes in the tourism
sector.
(3) Promote more home stay facilities to fill the tourists desires to understand the local
culture and lifestyle which can be experienced via the home stay facilities available.
Government
The public sectors, particularly national and local government, have an important
role to play by setting the agenda and providing the framework in which action
should take place. The regulatory environment also plays an important role in
creating the conditions suitable for sustainable tourism as self-regulation involves theagreement and co-operation of industry that is likely to be the most effective solution.
Therefore, the role of trade associations and industry organisations in distributing
information among their members and encouraging participation is essential and
coupled with an efficient decision-making platform to meet the public agencies
objectives, operations and processes would be well-aligned and consistent. This
entails the institutionalisation of a feedback-response system among public sector
agencies involved to address the gaps in the sector.
Figure 5 Government Internal Silos in Tourism
Currently the local tourism sector, the government and local governments operates,
each working within its own bubble, lead to little or no information flowing through
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agencies creating huge costs and administration work for public sector machinery as
well as for private sector. Eliminating excessive, complex and outmoded work steps will
improve business facilitation, making businesses more competitive.
Current issues face by the federal, state governments and agencies include overlapping
lines of authority over activities provided under various legislations which is aggrieved
further with different objectives, priorities and methods of operation. Based on the
differences in operations, the accessibility and availability of information is slow or
fragmented throughout the federal, state and agencies. As such feedback on the
various activities carried out at state or federal level may not flow directly and timely to
federal marketing and promotional agencies.
Recommendation
Delegate powers to the Ministry of Tourism when overlapping lines of authority
occurs.
Streamline the flow of information which can be assessable via various portals as
an integrated Malaysian tourism supply chain is crucial as it provides the platform
in light of intense competition, changing tourist expectations and the global
ecosystem. Working through a close-knit supply chain leads to alignment with
tourists interest and at the same time achieve economies of scale.
Figure 6 Integrated Tourism Supply Chain
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Environment
Malaysia is one of the few countries in the world that had its own laws for controlling the
environment long before the term 'environmentally responsible tourism' became
widespread. It has been estimated by the study by World Wildlife Fund for Nature(WWF) that ecotourism in Malaysia is growing at 35 per cent a year in terms of arrivals
and currently makes up 10 per cent of the country's tourism revenues. Malaysia is
blessed with rich biodiversity in forests and marine areas, having 19 national parks, the
most widely known probably being Taman Negara, Endau Rompin, Mulu famous for its
caves and Kinabalu, home of Southeast Asia's highest mountain of the same name.
Activities available include fishing, swimming, bird-watching, mountain climbing and
limestone caving. Malaysia boasts abundant wildlife and large areas have been set
aside for wildlife reserves, bird sanctuaries and marine parks. The government has also
established a network of virgin jungle reserves to save as permanent nature reserves
and natural arboreta and as undisturbed natural forest for general, ecological and
botanical studies which have been deemed to be older than those found in the Amazon
and Africa.
There has been a steady growth in environmental good practice across the global
tourism industry in recent years. There are examples of -
airlines and airports reducing pollution and noise impacts; cruise liners practicing marine
conservation; hotels implementing energy consumption and waste disposal programs;
car rental companies investing in increasingly fuel efficient fleets and railways sound
proofing to dampen noise. The result is that there are a number of excellent initiatives in
place designed to improve the environmental management of tourism businesses.
Recommendations
Ministry of Tourism together with the other agencies e.g. Department of
Environment, NGOs etc to raise the environmental awareness in the hotel
industry by promoting good practice internationally and assist in developing
hotel-specific guidance, enabling hotels of all sizes to implement environmental
programs.
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Other areas or environmental awareness and standards to be implemented
include setting up environmental management systems; promotion of energy
efficiency, renewable energy; and waste and water management.
Building human capital
The country needs develop the human capital that is required for the tourism industry as it is
an industry is a provider of jobs and career opportunities for all Malaysians . The increasing
sophistication of the industry means that there are a growing number of high-level jobs in
different sectors. The Government needs to take advantage of the tourism industry as a
potential to provide jobs for young people, first-time job seekers, minority groups and
women looking for part-time employment as the sector provides jobs across the economy;
ensuring that the pool of resources is available to support the industry.
To be able to facilitate this fundamental need of the industry, the country needs a large pool
of people with the adequate skills and knowledge to support the demands of the industry
e.g. high levels of expertise needed at many levels, among tour guides and business
owners, federal and state government agencies, with reference to ecotourism, how to
control tourists, business practices and environmental damage. Premised on this, having
strong education framework is key to provide a quality pool of resources to ensure a viable
tourism supply chain. Continual education, retraining and retooling for all stakeholders
involved in tourism is also crucial e.g. training in specialist tourism, training on specific
requirements of tourists to provide right product to the right tourist, sufficiently qualified
human resources will help develop wider range of products. Language proficiency is also
important as the ability to command high level of English language proficiency would gain
greater access to the dominant English-speaking market in the global supply chain and
possessing multi-language proficiency skills will further enhance the capacity of local
suppliers of tourism product to expand into the international tourist market. The tourism
sector provides good capacity for education; training and skills development for the rakyat
as there are widespread opportunities for long-term careers rather than mere jobs that can
be created at low cost with few barriers to entry and faster than most industries.
Recommendation
Ministry of Tourism together with the Ministry of Higher Education to work together to
develop a tourism training policy that will build a pool of resources for the tourism sector
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and continue to support training accreditation programmes in the tourism sector and
provide the necessary training to meet the demands of the tourists.
The Ministry of Education needs to take steps to improving the current school curricula
and implementing measures to improve skills especially in language proficiencies in
English.
Standards
Despite the growing number of standards and other initiatives for sustainable tourism as the
issues covered are mainly environmental, and initiatives are generally directed to the
hospitality industry. The majority of standards focus on accommodation certification and the
public sector implementation of international commitments to sustainability needed for
tourist destinations as suggested by the World Trade Organization and the Global Code of
Ethics for Tourism.
In order to possessing the necessary resources to ensure local tourism provisions are in line
with internationally recognised standards and best practices (e.g. The PATA Code or Asean
Tourism Standards for Environmentally Responsible Tourism, environmental impact
assessment, green hotel standard, food and beverage standard, public restroom standard,
home-stay standard). The need to comply with international laws on being environmentally
responsible, sustainable resource use, waste management, endangered species of animals,
flora and fauna. Enhancement can be made to ensure tourist safety and security, boats
loaded with passengers in accordance with capacity, life jackets are adequate and well-
maintained, tour bus drivers not speeding on rough rural roads, piracy prevention, and
tracks are well maintained, and tour site not degraded.
Recommendation
Ministry of Tourism together with the Department of Environment should establish
certification schemes with performance-based criteria, considering sustainability issues such
as environment, social accountability, culture and stating benchmarks for each one.
Performance standards mean that every company receiving that eco-label will have
committed to a threshold level and reached a pre-specified benchmark, guaranteeing a
basic standard.
Conclusion
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By integrating the activities along their value chain, organizations within the tourism sector
should work together to create products and services that have more value than separately
with Government support. This is a high-priority challenge if Malaysia's Tourism sector
potential is to be realised together with the broad scale economic wealth and job creation
that will accompany it to achieve a high income economy.
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Bibliography
1. Tourism Supply Chains, Richard Tapper
2. Joining Forces Collaborative Processes for Sustainable and Competitive Tourism, World Tourism
Organization
3. Malaysia Travel & Tourism (2002), World Travel and Tourism Council
4. Global Tourism, William Theobald
5. 10th Malaysian Plan
6. New Economic Report, Part 1
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