KOTA KINABALU: Sabah Tourism, Culture and Environment Minister Datuk Christina Liew wants the respective Tourism Action Council in 26 districts to be activated by next year.
She said most of the districts in Sabah had a Tourism Action Council set up with the assistance of the Sabah Tourism Board.
“Each council is responsible for identifying and developing their respective products for the benefit of their own district and people.
“This coming New Year there will many more tourists coming by regular flights and chartered flights, and income from tourism will also increase. This is one of the ways to enhance each distrct’s economy.
“We also want balanced tourism in Sabah, not just focused on Kota Kinabalu, Mount Kinabalu and the resort islands but all the across the state,” she said after launching the Community-Based Tourism Roadshow here.
Liew said community-based tourism would be able to enhance all districts and towns into business entities that could contribute to the state’s economy.
She said the state government through her ministry could provide the necessary infrastructure for all districts to heighten the experience for visitors.
“Whenever a District Tourism Council identifies its products to be promoted as tourism products, they will let us (ministry) know. Our officers will go down to work with them,” Liew said.
The two-day Community-Based Tourism Roadshow saw a total of 16 participants compared to only four last year.
Earlier, in her speech, Liew said up to September this year, tourism had already generated an estimated RM6.2bil in receipts or 7% compared to last year, for the state’s economy.
She said tourist arrivals were up 5.1% or 2.865 million compared to the same period last year. – Bernama
Source : Star Online
KOTA KINABALU: Sabah Tourism, Culture and Environment Ministry is on track to achieve its target of 3.85 million tourist arrivals, with RM8.154 billion tourism receipts, by the end of the year.
In the first nine months of this year, minister Datuk Christina Liew Liew, who is also deputy chief minister, said the state recorded 2,865,322 tourist arrivals, compared with 2,726,788 during the same period last year.
She said Sabah had recorded a 40.2 per cent increase in tourist arrivals from China.
She said 464,271 Chinese tourists visited the state from January to September, followed by 244,230 tourists from South Korea, which saw an increase of 8.3 per cent.
Liew was replying to a question from Datuk Jahid Jahim (GBS-Tamparuli) at the Sabah assembly sitting on whether the ministry would be able to achieve its tourist arrivals target this year.
“Sabah contributed 20 per cent of the tourist arrivals from China and about 52 per cent from South Korea to Malaysia.
“Air accessibility growth is one of the main factors leading to the increase in the number of international tourists as the state is now connected to 24 international destinations via 216 direct flights a week, with a capacity of 37,210,” she said.
Sabah Deputy Chief Minister Christina Liew says growth in air accessibility is one of the main factors for the increase in the number of international tourists visiting the state.
“This year, we have received seven new services from Kunming, Chengdu, Changsha, Xiamen, Beijing, Macao, and Bangkok.
“This has made Kota Kinabalu International Airport the busiest airport after Kuala Lumpur International Airport.”
She said the ministry had set a target of 1.275 million international tourists and 2.575 domestic visitors for the year.
On steps taken by the government to ensure that tourist arrivals continued to grow, Liew said her ministry, through the Sabah Tourism Board, had participated in roadshows, carried out familiarisation trips for media, promotional activities, worked with airline companies and other programmes.
Source: New Straits Times
KOTA KINABALU: The move to return half the tourism receipts to major contributing states in the country is seen to hugely benefit Sabah.
Sabah Chief Minister Datuk Seri Mohd Shafie Apdal said this was because one of Sabah’s largest economic contribution comes from tourism activities, and Sabah is actively involved in promoting the industry.
“For example if the federal government records a RM50mil tourism receipt, then I am confident the related states will get RM25mil, and if the federal government gets RM100mil from tourism, then states will also get more,” he said after the Budget 2019 announcement on Friday.
Shafie said this budget will see a boost in tourism activities in many states, not only Sabah.
Meanwhile, he said the RM5bil allocation for Sabah could develop various aspects in the state but he wants to see its distribution details to know clearer which are the areas which would be involved.
He said though Sabah actually needed more than RM5bil for the various long needed developments, he understood that this was what the government could give at the moment in view of the limited funds and current economic situation.
“I hope the allocations for Sabah would cover security, education and health developments,” Shafie said.
The Semporna MP hopes that the allocation can be used to also develop infrastructures such as roads, water, electricity and health facilities such as purchase of medications.
“This is because apart from doctors and specialists as well as bigger hospitals, we need more medicines,” he said.
Among the other aspects that is expected to see improvement and benefit the state include the Eastern Sabah Security Command (Esscom), reduction of levy on workforce in estates, the continuation of the Pan Borneo Highway, and stabilization of prices of goods in Sabah and Sarawak.
Source: The Star Online
This is the pangolin that was surrendered to the Sabah Wildlife Department by a member of the public.
KOTA KINABALU: A Malaysian-born retired engineer now engaged in philanthropic work, has offered to help set up a pangolin sanctuary in Sabah in the belief that Sabah can lead in pangolin conservation efforts.
Peter Chan, who has been working in the United States for 30 years, made the offer during a courtesy call on Deputy Chief Minister cum Minister of Tourism, Culture and Environment, Datuk Christina Liew, on Tuesday.
The Samaritan, who expressed his desire to work with nature, is also willing to make a substantial contribution from his endowments in the US, in funding the project dubbed Pangolin Conservation Initiative.
Given that the pangolin is now a totally protected species, Liew is elated that if Sabah blazes the trail in this endeavour with the support of the philanthropist, the proposed pangolin sanctuary will have the distinction of being the first of its kind in Southeast Asia.
She said it is a most timely move as pangolins are highly poached in this part of the region.
“It is a good proposal which will generate immense interest among nature lovers and conservationists. I am excited about this laudable cause. We thank Mr Chan for his initiative and unprecedented proposal.”
He and Sabah’s very own pangolin expert, Elisa Panjang, will be working on the proposal paper. Elisa is a well-known pangolin biologist.
“The paper will be presented formally to my ministry by the end of November. The Permanent Secretary (Datuk Datu Rosmadi Datu Sulai) and Sabah Wildlife Department will study the paper whether the project is financially viable before we submit it for the State Government’s consideration,” she said in a statement.
Liew also emphasised the need to educate the public on the importance of conserving the pangolin, described as a secretive, rare and unique mammal.
Chan told the minister that although he is not a career conservationist, he is very passionate about conservation work, and three months ago, friends recommended that he go to East Malaysia for pangolin conservation work.
“And that’s how I found out about Elisa. I think with her expertise, she can run the programme. It can be a kind of public-private
partnership and ideally, to be managed by the Sabah Wildlife Department (SWD). As far as I am concerned, I want to do something
good for Sabah and there is no financial gain.
“Let’s work together to achieve this goal. I don’t want this thing to fail. That’s why I am here. Other concerned Malaysians’ help to attain this goal will be greatly appreciated.
Once we get this project running, the next step is corporate sponsorship to make it financially sustainable. That’s just the way to do it,” he said.
Briefing Liew on the pangolin, Elisa said one of the species, Sunda pangolin, is found throughout Sabah but concentrated in the pristine forests in Kinabatangan and Central Sabah in the Danum area.
“It is estimated that there are more than 1,000 pangolins left in Sabah. The pangolin is about 110cm long and weighs less than 15kg. It is a natural heritage but the population is severely threatened by poaching for the international illegal wildlife trade. This mammal is hunted for its meat (exotic food), scales (traditional medicine) and skin (accessories). If no conservation work is in place, we may ultimately lose them,” she cautioned.
According to Elisa, the pangolins’ habitat destruction in favour of development is a threat to their survival but poaching is the main threat.
It is an open secret that Chinese tourists go for pangolin meat which is served illegally in some restaurants known to illegal tour operators. It is difficult for the relevant authorities to catch the errant restaurant owners as the latter are usually tipped off about would-be raids on their premises.
However, director of the Sabah Wildlife Department, Augustine Tuuga, said offenders have been convicted of illegal possession of pangolin parts.
“Pangolins are easily targeted by poachers by virtue of their slow movement. It is a solitary mammal (living alone). Its only
protection lies in the scales,” he added.
Last week, a member of the public surrendered a pangolin weighing 12kg to the department, and it has since been released into the forest.
Currently, Sandakan-born Elisa is conducting research on pangolins at the Danau Girang Field Centre in Kinabatangan.
The University Malaysia Sabah graduate, who holds a Master’s degree in Ecological Process, is pursuing her PhD in Biosciences – Organisms and Environment at the Cardiff University, United Kingdom.
Source: Borneo Post Online
Photo by Sabah Tourism BoardKota Kinabalu: Sabah is on track to achieve RM8 billion in revenue from tourism by the end of the year, said Deputy Chief Minister Christina Liew.
Liew who is also State Tourism, Culture and Environment Minister said up to August, Sabah Tourism Board (STB) estimated that the total tourism receipts have reached RM5.55 billion or 7.5 per cent more compared to the same period last year.
"As of August this year, total tourist arrivals to Sabah increased 5.4 per cent or 2.56 million compared to the same period last year," she told a press conference on the Xiamen Airlines' inaugural Xiamen-Kota Kinabalu flight, here, Friday.
"At least 417,574 or 45.2 per cent of these international arrivals came from China, making it the largest market source for international arrivals to Sabah.
"We are still on target to achieve 500,000 China arrivals by the end of the year.
"We will work closely with the office of the Chinese Consul-General to strengthen the Malaysia-China relations."
She said, the ministry's aims is to re-emphasise tourism in the East Coast, especially in Tawau and Sandakan.
"The Ministry is working on upgrading the airports in the East Coast to international status so that all the foreign airlines can establish a direct flight here.
"Sabah's attractions vary from the West Coast to the East," she said.
On the inaugural Xiamen-Kota Kinabalu flight on Oct. 28, Liew said it is the third direct flight by Xiamen Airlines to the city, after Fuzhou and Beijing.
"With this additional connectivity, there will now be a total of 100 weekly direct flights from 12 major and secondary cities in China to Kota Kinabalu International Airport (KKIA).
"I was told that Xiamen Airlines' network expands to over 55 Chinese cities with around 160 million population.
"The airlines have both Xiamen and Fuzhou as transfer hubs of these 55 Chinese cities."
She said, she was also informed that 80 per cent of passengers from the Fuzhou-Kota Kinabalu route are from Beijing and Northern Asia.
"Therefore, the airlines' winter schedule may include daily flights from Beijing to Kota Kinabalu.
"Xiamen Airlines is currently providing connections to 11 cities in South East Asia.
"The airline's long haul connection to Europe, US and Australia, once strategically tapped, could be beneficial for Sabah. "All these potential arrivals, now have many options flying in," she said.
Also present were Deputy Consul-General of China in Kota Kinabalu, Zhang He, and Xiamen Airlines (Kuala Lumpur Office) general manager Guo Yuan. - Ricardo Unto
Source : Daily Express
