KOTA KINABALU/8Dec: Sabah Tourism, Culture and Environment Minister (KePKAS) Datuk Jafry Ariffin paid a courtesy on newly appointed federal Tourism, Arts and Culture Minister (Motac) Datuk Seri Tiong King Sing at Putrajaya.
During the meeting, various issues were discussed including the renewal of licences for tour buses and vehicles rental faced by operators in Sabah.
Tiong had taken note of matter seriously and assured it will be resolved thoroughly to fully restore the country’s tourism industry in the near future.
On the other hand, Jafry is confident that the strategic cooperation between KePKAS and Motac will create a huge impact on the development of the tourism and culture industry in Sabah.
To ensure the tourism industry players stay competitive, he said the tourism ministry will apply for government assistance or incentives through Motac to assist the promotion and marketing of tourism and cultural products in Sabah.
On another issue, Tiong expressed his keenness to help upgrade local tourism facilities.
In turn, Jafry said the current tourism trend, regardless of local or foreigner is seen to prefer community-based tourism products and destinations.
“We see that our tourism trend has changed, now more people prefer go visit rural places to enjoy the nature, at the same time to experience the rural lifestyle and culture of the local community,” he said.
Jafry welcomed Tiong plans to help the tourism operators to upgrade the quality of their existing infrastructure to provide comfort to tourists.
