Tourism industry players are urged to obtain the compliance certificate and adhere to the standard operating procedure (SOP) against Covid-19 issued by Malaysia Productivity Corporation for free.

This is towards raising the level of confidence of tourists in using their services when travelling and visiting places in this country.

Malaysia Tourism Council president Uzaidi Udanis said that to date, 3,500 of the industry players had obtained the certificate and the list distributed to their business associates including in Thailand, the United States and some countries in Europe, so as to attract more tourists to Malaysia.

“Each application to obtain the certificate must meet the 60 indicators set including in the aspects of operations, accommodation and marketing, and if approved, they must display the certificate and QR code at their respective premises to make it easy for their customers to provide feedback.

“Companies with the certificate have managed to improve their business, especially in Langkawi, following the travel bubble where the small agents have benefited directly from the direct marketing overseas or without going through middlemen,” he said at a media conference here on Thursday (Jan 13).

Uzaidi said the MTC is prepared to share its experience and guidelines with any company wishing to organise events including hybrid ones, or using the behavioural insight concept by ensuring strict SOP adherence which had proven to reduce the risk of Covid-19 infection among the public.

Meanwhile, Umrah and Haj Tour Agencies Association (PAPUH) president Datuk Seri Razali Mohd Sham hopes that the temporary Umrah travel restriction for one month from Jan 8 would not be extended.

He said the duration was sufficient as the government including the National Disaster Management Agency (NADMA) provided quarantine centres, had tightened the SOP and enabled the Omicron risk infection evaluation to be made.

“I hope the government can use all the hotels allowed by the local authorities to carry on with their business as quarantine centres, while the pilgrims can choose any of these hotels felt suitable for them to undergo quarantine,” he added.