Challenges of Sustainable Tourism in Malaysia

Sustainability has not only become very essential for the modern day business but it has become a primary issue for the countries. The government is planning large numbers of initiatives so as to improve the condition of several industries. According to the Amir, Ghapar, Jamal & Ahmad, (2015, p. 117) sustainability is very important for the travel and tourism industry. This is due to the fact that natural resources and artificial resources have started to deplete. More numbers of companies both private and public are emerging in the Malaysian tourism market. This calls for giving higher attention towards the sustainability challenges. In terms of sustainability, the major challenge that company faces is related to the development of tourism sites and effective utilisation of resources keeping future in the mind. In order to ensure long term sustainability of the environment, Government is investing a huge amount of money for the destination development.

As per George, R., & Frey, N. (2012, p. 139) responsible tourism is way in which sustainability in Malaysia has been promoted. It has been noted that there is 23% increase in the number of people who wants sustainable holiday packages. Ecotourism attracting large number of people especially the ones that are from the Europe who wants to learn about the eco-system of Malaysia. There are lot of companies that are into green washing. In all the growth and business strategies adopted by various companies, sustainability is being followed at highest of levels. Companies have started to invest in the recycling and reusing of the water resources like in the form of sustainable gardens and use of solar panels to reduce the energy consumption.

Marzuki, Hay & James, (2012, p. 590) believes that people of Malaysia are more interested towards the agricultural tourism. This is the reason that sustainable farming is promoted by the local companies keeping environmental condition in mind. This will also support the market of farm made goods. This is the reason why companies are seeking economic independence. At the same time they are involving the local women who are skilled in local art like basket weaving and making of crafted items. This not only supports the business but it also helps in promoting the local culture in the market.

Kasimu, Zaiton & Hassan, (2012, p. 26) suggest that sustainability is not just the role of the governments or institutions but it is also the role of the people to work towards sustainable tourism. Even after the fact that Malaysia is relatively new in terms of tourism market in the ASEAN region, they have developed their market at a much faster rate. In the year 2005, tourism industry is a key foreign exchange earner for Malaysia as it contributed 40% of the nation’s balance of payment (Kasimu, Zaiton & Hassan, 2012, p. 24). Destination travel show has been arranged in the nation so as to ensure that they attract people towards do and don’ts at the tourism sites. It is seen that there are people from different cultural backgrounds that are coming to the workplace.

Promotion of Responsible Tourism and Sustainable Farming

Nair, Munikrishnan, Rajaratnam & King, (2015, p. 318), states that sustainable tourism aims to enlarge the socio-cultural, environmental and economic benefits which can be gained from tourism sector. There are different types of issues in the sustainable tourism. The biggest challenge is related to the economic policies. Since the local community has tried to capture on then local resources hence countries cannot invest in the projects related to sustainable tourism. There is also the problem related to policy making as well as deciding the regulations and guidelines that needs to be followed. Involving all the stakeholders is essential in the process of decision making. For this it is crucial that effective structure is developed and training is provided to the entire stakeholder at different level of the sustainability plan. This is because keeping everyone at the same platform is very difficult. Apart from this there is also a problem that the local people find some interest in the development of the area and hence their demands should also be addressed while developing any sustainable plan. At the local levels community, small retailers, tourist agents in the local authority. The contribution and initiatives will definitely make a difference to the whole participatory process.

On the contrary Hanafiah, Jamaluddin & Zulkifly, (2013, p. 795) believes that Sustainable tourism development of Malaysia have included certain aspects. Optimising the use of environmental resources while preserving the biodiversity and natural heritage should be included in the sustainable development. This country respects the local culture of the host community by preserving the cultural heritage that is living. Malaysian government has ensured sustainable development and equitable economic operations and employment opportunities. Up lifting the poverty in the local area is very essential in then sustainable tourism development program. Continuous monitoring and multi-stakeholder engagement should be at the highest of priority. The partnership must be at the local, federal and state level and must be backed by the support of the government. Government has adopted Agenda 21 in the national master plan. Ecotourism has been promoted in the national plans made by the government at different times. The definition is as per International Union for the Conservation of Nature and states that ecotourism is defined as a responsible travel and visitation to relatively undisturbed natural regions for appreciating and enjoying nature that aims to protect the environment. It helps in the sustainability of the resources as well as that of local people. Many areas in the country has been declared as marine or terrestrial protected areas in different categories like wildlife reserves, wetlands, forest reserves, marine parks and sanctuaries. Ministry of Culture, Art and Tourism acts as a single coordinating body that makes coordination between all the authoritative bodies at different levels. It is also playing a crucial role in the implementation of the National Eco tourism plan (Mosbah & Al Khuja, 2014, p. 3). This organisation checks the role of all other stakeholders in the industry specially that of the NGOs. Along with this at the state level there is State Tourism Action Councils. This will be further have the role of evaluating the role of the project outcomes.

Policy-Making and Stakeholder Involvement in Decision-Making

Razzaq, Hadi, Mustafa, Hamzah, Khalifah & Mohamad, (2011, p. 1418) suggests that energy, water conservation along with the waste disposal aspects needs to be implemented in the proper manner. Conservation of heritage, historical sites, artefacts and building that are under the preservation category is essential. Along with this, more value added activities are incorporated in the home stay programmes and agro tourisms. The industry self-regulations must be backed with strong legislation and policies related to environment. There are various environmental awareness programmes conducted by the Department of Environment as well as other governmental and non-governmental agencies. The establishment of Marine Parks Malaysia Order of 1994; The Protection of Wildlife Act of 1972; The Fisheries Act, 1985; National Parks Act, 1980; The National Forestry Act, 1984 and Environmental Quality Order, 1987 are some of the important regulations that help in sustainable development of tourism.

Falak, Chiun & Wee (2014, p. 415) believes that the major obstacle in the Malaysian National Conservation strategy is the fact that Malaysia is facing bureaucratic challenges. The bureaucratic processes are very slow and hence they are unable to implement their Agenda 21 which is mentioned in their national policy. The process includes utilising the stakeholders groups to find issues, agree on overall vision and check strategic priorities so as to establish the action initiatives. The sustainable tourism should be based on the strategy that specifically addresses the social, environmental and economic influences of the tourism. It requires setting targets, indicators, goals and monitoring process. Strategies must be implemented on the basis of set of actions. Some of the initiatives proposed by UNEP in 2003 are promoting more sustainable transport, enhancing environmental planning and management in the tourist destinations (Sood, 2011). Along with this, it also includes helping private tourism firms to become more sustainable as well as utilising suitable certification schemes. UNEP also proposed to converse and promote cultural and natural heritage resources. It also supports to strengthen the communication with local and visitors residents as well as promotes the usage of the local product and integration with other sectors. The Agenda 21 committee comprised of members from the local authority, civil society and business community. Their function is to raise awareness, develop action plan on the issues related to sustainable development (Tourism Malaysia, 2017). At local levels, they aim to promote cleanliness, reduction in crime, safety and security of the tourist. Safety has been a bigger challenge for the institutions in the sustainable tourism activities. Penang Island which is the major attraction for the tourist in Malaysia has to be developed as the mainland area especially in terms of costal pollution, traffic development. Holistic development of the Penang Island is required by the firm.

Lo, Songan, Ramayah, Yeo & Nair, (2013, p. 14) believes that in order to make the sustainable tourism as the top most priority, there is a need for the local agenda. The land use in Malaysia is a state subject hence requires the unique capabilities at the end of the local players so as to do the sustainable development in a better manner. Proper disposal of the waste and recycling and reusing of the products has to be encouraged. Malaysia needs to give more emphasis towards the ways in which natural and cultural aspects is outlines in the 9^th Malaysian Plan. Public participation is very essential in this regards.

References

Amir, A. F., Ghapar, A. A., Jamal, S. A., & Ahmad, K. N. (2015). Sustainable tourism development: A study on community resilience for rural tourism in Malaysia. Procedia-Social and Behavioral Sciences, 168, 116-122.

Falak, S., Chiun, L. M., & Wee, A. Y. (2014). A repositioning strategy for rural tourism in Malaysia-community’s perspective. Procedia-Social and Behavioral Sciences, 144, 412-415.

George, R., & Frey, N. (2012). Responsible Tourism and the Tourism Industry: A Demand and Supply Perspective. In Responsible Tourism (135-156). Routledge.

Hanafiah, M. H., Jamaluddin, M. R., & Zulkifly, M. I. (2013). Local community attitude and support towards tourism development in Tioman Island, Malaysia. Procedia-Social and Behavioral Sciences, 105, 792-800.

Kasimu, A. B., Zaiton, S., & Hassan, H. (2012). Hotels involvement in sustainable tourism practices in Klang Valley, Malaysia. International Journal of Economics and Management, 6(1), 21-34.

Lo, M. C., Songan, P., Ramayah, T., Yeo, A. W., & Nair, V. (2013). Rural tourism development. Industry’s perspectives on sustainable tourism. International Proceedings of Economics Development and Research, 65, 14.

Marzuki, A., Hay, I., & James, J. (2012). Public participation shortcomings in tourism planning: the case of the Langkawi Islands, Malaysia. Journal of Sustainable Tourism, 20(4), 585-602.

Mosbah, A., & Al Khuja, M. S. A. (2014). A review of tourism development in Malaysia. Euro J Bus and Manage, 6(5), 1-9.

Nair, V., Munikrishnan, U. T., Rajaratnam, S. D., & King, N. (2015). Redefining rural tourism in Malaysia: A conceptual perspective. Asia Pacific Journal of Tourism Research, 20(3), 314-337.

Razzaq, A. R. A., Hadi, M. Y., Mustafa, M. Z., Hamzah, A., Khalifah, Z., & Mohamad, N. H. (2011). Local community participation in homestay program development in Malaysia. Journal of Modern Accounting and Auditing, 7(12), 1418.

Sood, S. (2011) Sustainable travel in Malaysia. Retrieved from: https://www.bbc.com/travel/story/20110112-travelwise-sustainable-travel-in-malaysia

Tourism Malaysia, (2017) TOURISM MALAYSIA PROMOTES SUSTAINABLE TOURISM AT SATTE 2017. Retrieved from: https://www.tourism.gov.my/media/view/tourism-malaysia-promotes-sustainable-tourism-at-satte-2017