Sarawak to ensure tourism business sustainable - Abang Johari

The Sarawak government perceives "Responsible Tourism" as a responsibility for the state to make its tourism business sustainable, says Chief Minister Abang Johari Openg.

He said by understanding the nature of the Sarawak government's tourism setting, product portfolios and fragile ecosystem, it was logical to pursue responsible tourism to set in the equilibrium that satisfies visitors, local hosts and the state as a whole.

“Responsible Tourism is all about making tourism better places for people to live in and a better place for people to visit.

“It focuses on what people, businesses and governments do to maximise the positive economic, social and environmental impacts of tourism. It is all about identifying issues locally and addressing it transparently,” he said.

Abang Johari said this in his opening speech at the welcoming dinner for delegates of the 2019 World Tourism Conference (WTC 2019), which was also attended by Tourism, Arts and Culture Minister Mohamaddin Ketapi yesterday.

WTC 2019 is organised by the World Tourism Organization (UNWTO) and the Ministry of Tourism, Arts and Culture Malaysia.

This 5th edition of WTC continues to look at enhancing the sustainability of the tourism business, widening its horizon, to look ‘beyond’ tourism by consolidating various sectors, including health, education, transportation and entertainment into the spectrum.

Abang Johari said the Sarawak government recognised that Responsible Tourism took a variety of forms and was characterised by travel and tourism which minimised negative economic, environmental and social impacts, and generated greater economic benefits for local people and enhances the well-being of host communities.

“Responsible Tourism is exciting. It is very experiential and caring for our local hosts and to our environment. With people as the heart of Responsible Tourism, we give back to ensure the sustainability of the industry for the years to come.

“Our nature-based and landscape tourism calls for respect for conservation and the future generation. Our culture tourism calls for the creation of benefits for hosts, and when our hosts are happy, our guests leave with fond memories,” he said.

Meanwhile, Abang Johari said Sarawak had targeted five million tourist arrivals this year, compared with 4.4 million visitors that brought in RM7.95 billion in tourist receipts in 2018.

- Bernama