GROUPS representing retailers and tourism and trade associations have appealed to Tourism, Arts and Culture Minister Tiong King Sing to review and fine-tune the policy to exclude shopping in tour itineraries for foreign tourists.

Tiong on Saturday said the decision followed numerous complaints his ministry had received from tourists.

The groups, including BBKLCC Tourism Association Kuala Lumpur, Batu Road Retailers Association, Bumiputera Retailers Organisation, Industries Unite, Malaysia Retailers Association, Malaysia Retail Chain Association and Malaysia Shopping Malls Association, said the policy should allow shopping to be a must part of the itinerary of tourists “so long it is not restricted to nominated shops”.

“Shopping is a natural must in all tourists’ itineraries apart from sight-seeing, meals and entertainment,” they said in a statement.

“So long a travel itinerary does not include a must visit to a nominated shop, shopping should indeed be an important agenda and to be encouraged and developed.”

They pointed out that shopping, meals and entertainment are the flexible parts of a tourist spending budget compared to the fixed portions such as air tickets, accommodation and transport.

Backing their arguments with figures, the groups said in the pre-pandemic years, the shopping component of total tourist expenditures was 35.3% in 2016, 36.3% (2017) and 37.6% (2018).

They pointed out that in the six months of 2019, shopping made up the single largest portion of tourism expenditures, totalling RM14.72 billion.

“There is a limit to sight-seeing, accommodation and food and beverages, but there is virtually no limit to shopping and entertainment,” they said.

The groups said negative tourist experiences in certain tourism stops could be addressed by better enforcement, the threat of withdrawal of tour agent’s licence and having a blacklist of collaborating shops.

That, they said, should be an adequate deterrent to stop the malpractice.

“In the big picture, tourism is our country’s second revenue earner for our GDP and we have all these attributes for potential rapid growth,” they said. – February 15, 2023.