MOTAC targets 200,000 domestic tourists to Langkawi

Its minister Datuk Seri Nancy Shukri said about 30,000 tourists are expected to visit the resort island this month following its reopening under a tourism bubble pilot project beginning today.

She said the number of tourist arrivals today might be the best indication for Langkawi's performance in the tourism bubble pilot project.

She said this to reporters in a press conference here today.

Earlier, Nancy, accompanied by Kedah Menteri Besar Muhammad Sanusi Md Nor welcomed the first batch of 159 tourists who arrived at the Langkawi International Airport under the travel bubble initiative.

Nancy said the success of the initiative is very important to her ministry's efforts to revitalize the country's tourism sector which is one of the largest contributors to Malaysia's Gross Domestic Product (GDP).

"Tourism is a sector that has contributed 15.9 per cent to the country's GDP in 2019. We want to go back to that year. But it requires the commitment of all parties, not just the government," she said.

Muhammad Sanusi said in the same press conference, tourists who tested positive for COVID-19 upon arrival at the resort island would be sent to the COVID-19 Assessment Centre (CAC) and required to undergo a 10-day quarantine period.

He said a COVID-19 Low-risk Quarantine and Treatment Centre (PKRC) has been set up at the Langkawi International Shooting Range Malaysia to prepare for any eventuality.

"Members of the security forces from various agencies and staff of the Ministry of Health are also adequate to monitor the entry of tourists as soon as they arrive at the airport or ferry terminal," he said.