BANGKOK,
May 30 (Bernama) -– Malaysia ranks
second after Singapore, in offering the most attractive environment among Asean
countries for developing the travel and tourism sector.
According
to the Asean Travel and Tourism Competitiveness Report 2012, Malaysia is one of
the world's top 10 destinations, with about 25 million visitors annually.
The
report was released at the Travel, Trade and Tourism Summit held here today,
prior to the World Economic Forum on East Asia.
The
report is underpinned by the World Economic Forum's Travel and Tourism
Competitiveness Index (TTCI) which ranks 139 economies according to their
performance in areas that make investment in developing the travel and tourism
sector attractive.
Under
the TTCI, Malaysia ranked 35, Singapore (10th), Thailand (41st), Brunei (67th),
Indonesia (74th), Vietnam (80th), Philippines (94th) and Cambodia (109th).
The
rankings are based on data covering 14 areas: policy rules and regulations;
environmental sustainability; safety and security; health and hygiene;
prioritisation of travel and tourism industry; and air transport
infrastructure.
Others
are ground transport infrastructure; tourism infrastructure; ICT
infrastructure; price competitiveness in the travel and tourism industry; human
resources; affinity for travel and tourism industry; natural resources and
cultural resources.
The
report stressed the critical role of travel and tourism industry in
accelerating the establishment of the Asean Community by 2015 and it reviewed
the efforts and initiatives by Asean member countries to collectively develop
the sector.
"Travel
and tourism is not only a critical driver of economic development and social
progress. It also represents a formidable factor of regional integration,"
said World Economic Forum managing director Borge Brende.
He said
by improving connectivity and mobility, travel and tourism contributed in
creating a regional identity, a sense of "ASEANness among citizens."
"What
is good for the travel and tourism sector is good for the economy and
vice-versa," explained World Economic Forum economist Thierry Geiger.
The
report analysis provides some insight into the profound differences among
countries in terms of tourism outcomes.
"Singapore
draws 20 times more tourists per capita and 30 times more receipts per capita
than the Asean average.
"Malaysia
is one of the world's top 10 destinations, with about 25 million visitors
annually, while the Philippines, despite being much larger, attracts six times
fewer," according to the report.
The
report highlighted the enormous potential for developing the travel and tourism
sector in Asean.
The
region boasts a wealth of natural and cultural heritage, as well as a long
tradition of tourism, and it is also strategically located at the heart of
Asia.
The
extraordinary diversity of Asean countries further enhances the region's
attractiveness, apart from Asean as an affordable destination by international
standards.
However,
the report said, in most countries, the potential had been only partially
tapped, owing to a number of weaknesses. They include inadequate infrastructure,
poor public health and weak environmental stewardship.
Conservation
efforts must protect the region's extraordinary natural heritage which is
central to its travel and tourism competitiveness.
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