Think out of the box, tourism players told

GEORGE TOWN – Innovation and a cost-conscious approach are key to prevent the Malaysian Employers Federation’s projection of two million job losses, primarily in tourism and retail, from becoming a reality, said stakeholders.

Penang tourism exco Yeoh Soon Hin called on hospitality players to offer more staycations and lower prices to drive domestic travel, but stressed the importance of maintaining quality.

“We don’t know when Covid-19 will be over, so we need to think creatively,” he said when promoting the World Hospitality, Lifestyle and Entertainment Exhibition and Conference 2020 (WHOLE 2020), a virtual event organised by Alpine Group Services, recently.

All economic sectors except for essential services were shut when the movement control order (MCO) to contain the coronavirus was imposed on March 18, dealing a massive blow to the national economy.

Border closures worldwide have hit the tourism industry hard, with the World Travel and Tourism Council predicting 100 million layoffs globally this year.

Yeoh gave an assurance that the state government’s Career Assistance and Talent Centre will help retrenched Penangites secure employment.

Khoo Boo Lim, chairman of the Malaysia Association of Hotels’ Penang chapter, said things began to look up when the MCO entered its recovery phase in June.

“Most hotels are doing well on the weekends, especially those targeting the leisure market. But, occupancy on weekdays is still low as corporate and business tourism has not really taken off.

“Many countries, including Malaysia, have barred their citizens from travelling abroad and foreigners from entering. Recovery will take a while, and it will definitely not happen this year or even in the first half of 2021.”

He said most hotel employees who lost their jobs during the MCO have begun working again.

However, he acknowledged that it is difficult for experienced staff to get the senior positions they previously held.

The country recorded an average of 25 million to 28 million international visitors annually over the last few years, said Tourism Malaysia domestic and events division senior director Datuk Ammar Abd Ghapar, so to fill the void left by the virus crisis, industry players are forced to rethink and reinvent domestic tourism.

He said tour, hotel and transportation packages should be revamped to suit the current scenario, but cautioned against going fully virtual.

“Virtual is not good for us. If we go virtual, places won’t be occupied, transportation won’t move and hotels will stay empty.

“We need physical presence and movement. Technology is good, but we need to see the movement of people. This is what the industry is all about.”

National Tourism Council president Uzaidi Udanis holds a different view.

“Because of virtual tourism, we are able to have this hybrid event,” he said, referring to WHOLE 2020.

“Based on our records, there’s proof that we can monetise and upsell virtual tourism.”

When opening the conference, Tourism, Arts and Culture Minister Datuk Seri Nancy Shukri said Putrajaya is going all out to resuscitate the economy and boost employment numbers.

A RM600 one-off aid for tour guides is among the government’s assistance for affected tourism workers, and more than RM4 million had been disbursed to some 7,000 guides as of August 25.

To encourage Malaysians to vacation locally, a personal income tax relief of up to RM1,000 is included in a stimulus package announced in June. – The Vibes, September 22, 2020