IPOH, Interstate cooperation is needed to boost balanced tourism development and attract tourists to the country. Malaysia Tourism Promotion Board (Tourism Malaysia) deputy chairman Datuk Yeoh Soon Hin said states should not be competitive but complement each other. "For Perak and Pahang, for instance, can jointly develop ecotourism. Perak is also near Penang and can conduct the 'sharing the resources' concept. "So I urge all states to foster more partnerships to share the tourism industry, in fact, we also hope that private sector initiatives and agents will work together to bring tourists to other states,' he said at a media conference in conjunction with a working visit to Perak in Hobbitoon Village, Simpang Pulai here today, adding that the board would continue to monitor such efforts and channel assistance needed to each state to ensure the development of a balanced tourism sector. Meanwhile Perak Tourism, Industry, Investment and Corridor Development Committee chairman Loh Sze ee said they were inc reasing efforts to ensure that tourists would stay on for several days in the state. 'The challenge is to get tourists to stay longer in Perak. "Perak actually is one of the strongest in domestic tourism but we want to raise it so that it's not that they just go through Perak on their way between Penang and Kuala Lumpur. We want them to stay more than a day in Perak,' he said, adding that the state government also partnered Tourism Malaysia to introduce tourism areas in the state. "Many tourists stop over in Perak to eat, so the gastronomic sector is important but we want them to fill their time with other tourist activities,' he said. Source: BERNAMA News Agency
