Call To Malaysian, Indonesian Tour Operators To Collaborate

By Ahmad Fuad Yahya
JAKARTA (Bernama) - Malaysian and Indonesian tour operators
should take advantage of the growing tourism market by establishing a mechanism
for collaboration, said Malaysian Ambassador to Indonesia Syed Munshe
Afdzaruddin Syed Hassan.

He said the collaboration should not be limited to tourism traffic between
Malaysia and Indonesia but should also transcend the global market, particularly
the Southeast Asian and European markets.

"Tourism industry players should tap the growing tourism market as everyone
can now travel with cheap airlines by looking at the successes, failures and
challenges.

"The information gathered could help the government as a facilitator to
devise a formula for future direction of tourism collaboration between the two
countries," he said at a meeting between Malaysian and Indonesian tour and
travel operators here Tuesday.

He proposed the Malaysian Association of Tour and Travel Agencies (Matta)
and the Association of Indonesian Travel Agencies (Asita) to formulate a
mechanism for cooperation.

Syed Munshe Afdzaruddin said tourism was the second biggest contributor to
the Malaysian economy by generating a revenue of RM55 billion (US$17.94 billion)
in 2009.

Malaysia received 2.5 million tourist arrivals from Indonesia last year
while 1.1 million Malaysian tourists visited Indonesia in 2009, he said, adding
that about 70 per cent of medical tourists in Malaysia were from Indonesia.