The COVID-19 pandemic has caused a major impact on business industries worldwide and in Penang. It has halted the tourism industry of Penang since the start of 2020. To curb the outbreak and flatten the curve, the Malaysian Government’s Movement Control Order (MCO) has been in place since 18 March and further extended till 9 June 2020.
Hence, as one of the economy recovery effort, the Penang state government is working on policy pertaining to the next normal in the tourism industry.
During the first virtual tourism roundtable discussion on 25 April 2020, as mentioned by the Penang Chief Minister YAB Chow Kon Yeow, a Tourism Penang Next Normal Taskforce will be formed by the state government with the Chief Minister as chairman and YB Yeoh Soon Hin, as deputy chairman.
Several roundtable discussions are also organised virtually with the industry players namely the Penang Tourist Guide Association, Association of Tourism Attraction Penang (ATAP), Malaysia Association of Hotels (MAH) Penang, the airlines and the travel agents to engage the industry and brainstorm.
To further assess the extent of the COVID-19 impact on our tourism industry, the Penang State EXCO Office for Tourism, Arts, Culture and Heritage (PETACH) has conducted an online survey aimed to gauge the weight of the affect by COVID-19.
“This survey is to obtain more accurate information on the effect of the Covid-19 on the overall situation. This is to get feedback from different sectors relevant to the industry in order to get a better overview of the extent of the impact to industries such as the accommodation and lodging, attractions, travel agents/ tour operators, transportation providers, among others
“At the same time, I am also engaging different sectors through virtual roundtable sessions in order to get a better overview and understanding of the extent of the impact and work towards alleviating the impact to the industry,” said Yeoh.
This survey will gather input from the industry’s stakeholders for establishing current and post COVID-19 recovery plans. Those who are interested may participate in this online survey through https://forms.gle/m5v7TUT2GA4vj4Gk8 before 26 May 2020.