THE delay in promised governmental aid to the tourism industry has caused setbacks for the hotel industry, at a time when it is still fighting to recover from the Covid-19 pandemic.
The aid, which is under the Penjana stimulus package and totals RM1 bil, saw little clarity following its delay to July 15, and this has affected the industry’s ability to plan its next steps.
“Delays in clarity are never good for anyone. Under these circumstances, it has hampered important planning and decision making for the industry,” a source in the industry told FocusM.
This follows concerns raised by the Malaysia Association Tour Agency (MATA) that the government is slow in disbursing aid, having received “many inquiries and complaints” from its members about the lack of information and disbursement, according to MATA president Mohd Khalid Harun in a statement on July 19.
“So far nothing (no announcements) has been made by Bank Negara Malaysia, the Finance Ministry, or the Tourism, Arts and Culture Ministry. If the government is serious about saving the industry that contributed RM86.14 bil to the Malaysian economy in 2019, then now is the time. If the government continues to delay, the effect will be worse on the economy,” Khalid said.
Malaysian Association of Hotels (MAH) CEO Yap Lip Seng noted that the Penjana Tourism Financing scheme is definitely much needed by the industry, and agrees that it is needed fast for stakeholders to plan ahead for tourism recovery.
“The Penjana Tourism Financing would assist the industry in making early decisions as well as plans. The delay would push recovery plans back, and while we might not see the impact now, without timely assistance the industry might be caught off guard when recovery comes. The industry needs to be ready to receive and serve tourists at full capacity as soon as possible,” Yap told FocusM.
He also shared that the information to date is that there will be 12 financial institutions entrusted to distribute the funds, and MAH has submitted feedback to the government to ensure the fund is accessible to all.
Prime Minister Muhyiddin Yassin, in his address today, also noted that “hotels in Malaysia are receiving a lot of bookings” since the ban on domestic travel was lifted.
However, according to industry players, this is a very localised effect, and does not account for the industry as a whole.
“Local hotels enjoying a surge in bookings is a very localised and specific occurence. It is not general across the industry,” Impiana Hotels Bhd executive director Azrin Kamaluddin told FocusM.
MAH’s Yap agrees, stating that bookings had surged over the last couple of weekends with the rush before school reopens, but occupancy was still at a low level.
“Overall, however, based on our recent data, occupancy is only at approximately 25%. This is because most states and major cities are experiencing low occupancy, due to their dependency on foreign arrivals,” said Yap.
He also noted that areas such as Kuala Lumpur, Selangor, Kedah, Johor and Sabah, in particular, are averaging at between 12% and 20%. – July 21, 2020
