Nazri: Fewer tourists from China and Taiwan, but overall arrivals up 9.7pc
The Malay Mail Online – 7 hours agoRELATED CONTENT
- Datuk Seri Nazri Aziz attributed the overall increase from January to July to the …
KUALA LUMPUR, Nov 3 — Tourists arrivals from China and Taiwan fell 11.8 per cent and 2.9 per cent respectively following the disappearance of Flight MH370 but overall arrivals rose by 9.7 per cent, said Tourism and Culture Minister Datuk Seri Mohamed Nazri Abdul Aziz.
The federal minister attributed the overall increase from January to July to the promotional work undertaken by Tourism Malaysia abroad.
“From January to July we received 997,370 tourists from China and 168,962 from Taiwan, much less than the number we got in the corresponding period last year,” he told Parliament.
During Question Time, Barisan Nasional’s (BN) Sik MP Dr Mansor Abd Rahman asked the ministry for statistics on tourist arrivals after the MH370 incident on March 8 and the subsequent crash of MH17 on July 17.
"But at the same period Malaysia recorded the arrival of 16.1 million foreign tourists, which is a 9.7 per cent increase, compared to last year," said Nazri.
"Meanwhile, tourism revenue stood at RM35.3 billion from January to June, or 13.2 per cent higher than last year," he said.
Barisan Nasional’s (BN) Sik MP Dr Mansor Abd Rahman had asked the ministry during Question Time for statistics on tourist arrivals after the MH370 incident on March 8 and the subsequent crash of MH17 on July 17.
Despite noting the increase in tourist arrivals, Nazri said the effects of the MH17 incident is still "being monitored".
Nazri said the ministry's promotion arm, Tourism Malaysia, has taken steps to ensure the industry is not affected by the twin tragedies, such as beefing up marketing efforts in Singapore, Indonesia, Philippines, Brunei, India, Australia and Europe.
Tourism Malaysia has also taken part in trade fairs and global Expos to draw in tourists from some of the biggest markets, including Berlin, Dubai and London, he said.
Nazri also said that the setting up of the Giant Panda Conservation Centre at the National Zoo has helped the industry with some "encouraging publicity".
On March 8, Malaysia Airlines (MAS) MH370 vanished with 239 people on board and has yet to be found despite months of searching in the southern Indian Ocean.
Months after MH370’s disappearance, on July 17, Flight MH17 carrying 298 people was shot down when flying over a conflict-torn zone in eastern Ukraine.
* A previous version of this report erroneously stated the increase in tourist arrivals as 13.2 per cent. The report has since been corrected.
