State Tourism, Creative Industry and Performing Arts Minister Datuk Seri Abdul Karim Rahman Hamzah (centre) with the cast of "Raya Emas" at the movie's launch on Tuesday (Feb 20). -ZULAZHAR SHEBLEE/The Star
KUCHING: Sarawak can exceed its target of four million visitors this year after recording more arrivals in January compared to the same month last year, says Datuk Seri Abdul Karim Rahman Hamzah.
The state Tourism, Creative Industry and Performing Arts Minister said Sarawak received 352,983 visitors last month, an increase of 10.6% from 319,064 the previous month, January.
Of the total, he said foreign arrivals also rose by 22.6% from 172,983 last year to 212,125 this year, while domestic visitors dropped slightly from 146,081 to 140,858.
Likewise, tourism receipts grew by 12% from RM809.37mil in January last year to RM907.37mil this year.
"These are very good indicators. It's just the first month and we have already seen an increase in overall and foreign arrivals.
"Usually the trend will continue until December," he told reporters after launching a local movie titled "Raya Emas: Salako Sacred Treasure" here on Tuesday (Feb 20).
As such, Abdul Karim said he was confident Sarawak would hit the four million target before year end.
He said Sarawak had many events lined up for the year to bring in visitors, along with strong promotion efforts.
"We have a lot of musical events this year, including the Rainforest World Music Festival, Kuching Jazz Festival and Borneo Jazz Festival," he said.
Commenting on the "Raya Emas" movie, Abdul Karim said it showcased the culture of the Salako, a small indigenous community from Lundu district near here.
He said about 80% of the movie was shot in Lundu, which would help promote the area's natural beauty to moviegoers.
"I hope this movie will inspire other production houses to look into portraying the culture and legends of other ethnic groups on film.
"There are a lot of things about Sarawak that we can showcase in movies or documentaries," he said.
"Raya Emas" executive producer Winson Voon said the movie was currently in post-production and set to hit the screens on Malaysia Day, or Sept 16, this year.
"It's an action movie featuring a fictional legendary flower called 'raya emas'.
"In the movie you will also see the Salako culture," he said.
