Tourism: Making the States benefit

Sandakan: The Tourism Ministry has proposed that state governments should get returns from the tourism sector.

Its Minister, Datuk Seri Azalina Othman Said, said presently all income from the sector was channelled to the Federal Government.

"In my view, some percentage of the tourism sector income should be returned to the state governments based on tourism income generated by the respective state," she said after launching the 'Zoom!Malaysia' campaign to promote domestic tourism at the Rainforest Discovery Centre (RDC) in Sepilok, here, Saturday.

Azalina said the returns from tourism could be used to enhance promotions and develop tourist spots in the states. The move, she said, would also enable the state governments to give greater commitment to efforts to promote tourism in their states.

Azalina also said the Government needs to focus on the overall concept of tourism, with better promotion of the tourism products in the local and international tourism belt. This would include more specific tourist destinations.

She said the Tourism Ministry had fixed 2009 to promote Malaysia more aggressively through various activities such as Flora and Fauna 2010.

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