LANGKAWI: The government is planning several proactive measures to give a new lease of life to Langkawi’s tourism industry.
Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department Tan Sri Nor Mohamed Yakcop said focus would be given to the development of eco-tourism as Langkawi had several advantages and uniqueness.
“For example, Langkawi has 500 species of butterflies compared to Australia which has 200.
“However, in the last few years, the island’s tourism industry has been rather gloomy or in the doldrums compared to other tourist destinations like Bali and Phuket,” he said after attending a meeting on drawing up a plan to develop Langkawi more effectively, here, yesterday .
“Another effort will be increasing the number of scheduled and chartered flights from various destinations, and the frequency of boat trips from Penang to Langkawi.”
Nor Mohamed said the cleanliness level of the ferries plying between Langkawi and Kuala Perlis and Kuala Kedah would also be raised for the comfort of passengers.
He said the government was confident that Langkawi could be a tourist destination that was comparable to Hawaii, Bali and Phuket.
He added that close cooperation among
various quarters like the Economic Planning Unit, Langkawi Development Authority, Tourism Ministry and the state government was important to successfully develop the resort island.
The closed-door meeting was also attended by former prime minister Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad, representatives of several government departments and agencies, and tourism operators. — Bernama