From Laos to Selangor: Adopting the Community Cultural Based Tourism to the Splendid State of Selangor
SELANGOR, 31st October 2023 – Poised as the most visited state in Malaysia last year with over 22 Million domestic visitors, the State of Selangor through its official tourism promotion agency, Tourism Selangor once again kickstarted a mission to expand its tourism offerings by exploring Laos with Selangor Community Hosts and 6 Local Councils; Kuala Selangor, Hulu Selangor, Kuala Langat, Kajang, Klang and Sabak Bernam. The programme which was organised for 6 days from 22nd October to 27th of October 2023 was led by the Honourable Ng Suee Lim, the Local Government and Tourism EXCO of Selangor.
Explore the Voice of Local is a series that has been previously conducted in Bangkok to re-implement the success of community-based tourism in the selected countries. Ban Phanom Weaving Village, Ban Xanghai and Houey Hong Vocational Training Centre for Women are among the tourist attractions that were successfully developed by the community and empowered by Tourism Laos and the Ministry of Information, Culture and Tourism of Laos to be adopted in Selangor.
According to the Honourable Ng Suee Lim, the EXCO of Local Government and Tourism of Selangor, the State of Selangor has been actively involved in the Selangor Community Host Program as it ensures the tourism industry’s key players and the communities enrich each other. Since 2018, the State has appointed 22 active Selangor Community Hosts across the state which include Hulu Langat, Hulu Selangor, Klang, Kuala Langat and Sabak Bernam.
Bilateral relationships and co-managed programmes with other countries such as the “Explore the Voice of Local” series will be able to intensify international travelling to Selangor. The efforts will directly contribute towards the Splendid Selangor, Take Me Anywhere! campaign, which is a global tourism marketing campaign by Tourism Selangor. The campaign is geared to establish Selangor as a prominent travel destination and to increase cooperation between the interested nations.
In records, the State managed to increase the inbound tourism to the state with an increase of 62.4% in international tourist inflow mainly from China, Indonesia and Singapore in 2022. The State of Selangor is certain that we will be able to achieve the targeted international tourist influx of 1.3 Million by the end of 2023 with an increase of 12% compared to 2022, through various sales missions and cross-sharing programmes undertaken in other countries.
About Tourism Selangor
Tourism Selangor is Selangor State’s Official Tourism Promotion Agency established to increase the number of local and international tourists to Selangor by enhancing and developing the known as well as the undiscovered beauty of the State.
Spanning over nine districts, including Petaling, Gombak, Klang, Sepang, Hulu Langat, Sabak Bernam, Kuala Selangor, Kuala Langat and Hulu Selangor, the area is known as an extraordinary holiday and event destination.
Many initiatives are taken to achieve this, such as organising local and international campaigns, events, overseas tourism trade missions, local roadshows and many more.
-Farazuha Aripin /DG
