KOTA KINABALU: The state capital’s tourism sector may become deeply affected by the Wuhan coronavirus outbreak, said Kota Kinabalu Member of Parliament Chan Foong Hin.
Chan said the outbreak could impact the Visit Malaysia 2020 business target, especially for Kota Kinabalu, which is popular with tourists.
"We rely a lot on Chinese tourists and we don't know how serious this will become. What we know is that the whole of Hubei province is under quarantine.
"So, you can imagine how seriously this quarantine will impact our tourist arrivals," he told reporters when met at the state government’s Chinese New Year Open House here, today.
From January to November last year, the Sabah Tourism Board recorded 3.766 million tourists arrivals, with China contributing the most, followed by South Korea.
Following the virus outbreak, AirAsia suspended flights between Wuhan and Kota Kinabalu, as China imposed a quarantine on the city.
In view of this, Chan expressed hope that related agencies could look into increasing tourist arrivals from other parts of the world, especially South Korea.
"I'm sure some air companies can facilitate this change and open up more direct flights from South Korea to Kota Kinabalu, as well as from Europe and the United States," he said.