Tourist and ecotourism site operators in Johor have been urged to clearly display product prices.
Johor Domestic Trade and Cost of Living Ministry (KPDN) director Lilis Saslinda Pornomo said such ethical practices would increase consumer confidence and trust among both local and international tourists.
“We want to create a trade environment which is transparent,” she said during the launch of the Johor-level Compliant Tourism Hotspot Zone programme at Kampung Sungai Melayu Ecotourism Centre in Iskandar Puteri.
Kampung Sungai Melayu was selected as the first location under the programme, which will be rolled out across the state in phases.
Lilis said the initiative built on the ministry’s market compliance programme that was previously carried out at eight public markets across the state.
The expanded scheme will utilise advocacy, education and integrated cooperation to ensure tourism operators complied with set regulations.
As part of the requirements, Lilis said businesses must clearly display prices for goods and services, including ticket prices for ecotourism activities.
She said the ministry would also provide “patuh” price tags to help traders present pricing clearly to the public.
Kota Iskandar assemblyman Datuk Pandak Ahmad, who attended the launch, welcomed the expansion, saying transparent management would bolster tourist confidence across Johor.
He said Kampung Sungai Melayu was becoming a huge tourist destination with more than 18,000 visitors as of September this year.
“Our target was only 15,000 for Visit Johor (campaign) for the entire year, but we have exceeded that figure and hope to reach 20,000 by the end of the year.”
Pandak said most of the recorded visitors were from South Korea, Japan and Europe.
The state-level rollout follows the ministry’s nationwide push on Sept 12 to enforce fair pricing and lawful transactions across major tourist destinations.
KPDN deputy director-general for Operations (Prevention) Aris Mamat said 16 tourist hotspots nationwide were selected as pilot projects this year, including sites in Negri Sembilan, Melaka and Johor.
