Malaysia will reopen its borders to international visitors by January 1 at the latest, a government advisory council said on Thursday, as the country seeks to accelerate the recovery of the tourism sector.
National Recovery Council (NRC) chairman Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin said the move was made after taking into consideration the achievements made from the Covid-19 National Immunisation Programme. Muhyiddin, who chaired the NRC meeting this morning, said the council took note of the sector's current situation, which saw slow recovery progress from lack of international tourist arrivals, apart from tourism operators requiring more time to restart their businesses.
“Taking into account the good vaccination level of the country, today the NRC has decided that the country's borders should be opened to international visitors by Jan 1, 2022,” NRC chairman Muhyiddin Yassin said speaking to media.
He said that the NRC had noted a very slow recovery of Malaysia’s economy, especially in the tourism sector, due to the absence of foreign visitors to the country.
The Southeast Asian country has gradually reopened its economy in recent weeks as coronavirus infection rates have slowed amid a ramped-up vaccination program. More than three-quarters of Malaysia's 32 million population are vaccinated, government statistics show.
Malaysia closed all its international borders to foreign visitors last year as the country was battling with a rising number of COVID-19 cases. The border closure has resulted in Malaysia losing some RM90 billion (US$21 billion) in tourism receipts.
National Recovery Council (NRC) chairman Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin said the move was made after taking into consideration the achievements made from the Covid-19 National Immunisation Programme. Muhyiddin, who chaired the NRC meeting this morning, said the council took note of the sector's current situation, which saw slow recovery progress from lack of international tourist arrivals, apart from tourism operators requiring more time to restart their businesses.
“Taking into account the good vaccination level of the country, today the NRC has decided that the country's borders should be opened to international visitors by Jan 1, 2022,” NRC chairman Muhyiddin Yassin said speaking to media.
He said that the NRC had noted a very slow recovery of Malaysia’s economy, especially in the tourism sector, due to the absence of foreign visitors to the country.
The Southeast Asian country has gradually reopened its economy in recent weeks as coronavirus infection rates have slowed amid a ramped-up vaccination program. More than three-quarters of Malaysia's 32 million population are vaccinated, government statistics show.
Malaysia closed all its international borders to foreign visitors last year as the country was battling with a rising number of COVID-19 cases. The border closure has resulted in Malaysia losing some RM90 billion (US$21 billion) in tourism receipts.
