Promotion Of Homestay Industry In Hulu Selangor Needs To Be More Aggresive - DPM

HULU SELANGOR, April 18 (Bernama) -- The homestay industry in Hulu Selangor should be promoted more aggressively because its benefits the rural folk and Felda settlers in the constituency, said Deputy Prime Minister Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin. According to him, this was because the industry which was centred on the traditions and culture of the rural community held vast potential and did not involve a huge capital outlay. He said this when launching "E-pemasaran homestay" in Felda Tengi here Sunday. "E-pemasaran homestay" enables tourists, locally and abroad, to book homestay packages through 3G capable handphones without having to go through third parties. Also present were Tourism Minister Datuk Seri Dr Ng Yen Yen, Deputy Minister in the Prime Minister's Department Datuk Ahmad Maslan, Felda chairman Tan Sri Dr Mohd Yusof Noor and Malaysian Homestay Association president, Sahariman Hamdan.

Meanwhile, Ng said now the application was accessible to the 11 million customers of Maxis and in future, would be expanded to other networks based on needs. On the homestay industry, she said her ministry allocated RM45 million last year whereby each operator was given financial aid up to a maximum RM2,500 to repair or install new toilets. As of March this year, there were 3,283 homestay operators in the country offering 4,414 rooms.