KOTA KINABALU: Sabah aims to achieve 10 key projects for tourism and related sectors this year.
State Tourism, Culture and Environment Minister Datuk Seri Christina Liew said these include the Sabah Cultural Complex in Kinarut, Papar district; a resort in Tawau Hills Park; Tawau Jetty; a mini night safari; and a possible upgrade of the Sepilok Orang Utan Rehabilitation Centre.
There are also plans to upgrade the Kota Kinabalu Wetlands/Bird Sanctuary, a proposal for a Kota Kinabalu City Park project, a Kudat Marine Gallery and Discovery Centre, an expansion of the Kota Kinabalu International Airport, and the planting of Napier grass for Borneo pygmy elephant grazing along the Riparian reserve in Kg Bilit Kinabatangan.
She said these will complement other upcoming events and tourism activities to achieve 3.5 million tourist arrivals this year.
Liew said tourism in Sabah continued to register positive growth during the first 11 months of last year, with total visitor arrivals of over 2.8 million.
“We attribute this to improved consumer confidence, enhanced air connectivity through smart partnerships and collaboration, and marketing campaigns being carried out by the Sabah Tourism Board (STB), tour operators, and other tourism stakeholders,” she said on Friday (Jan 17).
She said STB is upbeat about achieving the arrival target of 3.3 million visitors while gearing up towards 3.5 million.
“We will do a mid-term review and if the numbers are good, we may revise the figure upward,” she added.
She said that last year saw the resumption or introduction of 15 international flights to Kota Kinabalu from destinations such as Taipei, Jakarta, Shanghai, Incheon, Hangzhou, Fuzhou, Shanghai, Ningbo, Manado, Bali, Kunming, Busan, Shantou, Kaohsiung and Ho Chi Minh City.
She said the ministry is studying the possibility of opening new air routes from Australia to Sabah this year and that STB is working on this proposed connectivity.
"I may lead a state delegation to Russia to inspire and woo Russian tourists to go on a winter holiday trip to Sabah (via Shanghai) to escape the extreme cold weather in their country where temperatures can be as low as -40 degrees Celsius,” Liew added.
On this note, she said Sabah is gaining momentum as a destination for MICE (meetings, incentives, conferences and exhibitions) events, business conferences, fairs and exhibitions, film tourism destinations, science exploration, cruise tourism and adventure as well as fitness-related activities.
She said with aggressive initiatives and strategic collaborations, Sabah would be able to achieve its targets and host events to bring economic returns to the people of the state.
