IPOH: Despite a vastly reduced number of visitors during the current Conditional Movement Control Order (CMCO), Taiping Zoo in Perak, the country's oldest zoo, is nevertheless coping well.
Taiping Zoo and Night Safari director Dr Kevin Lazarus said the zoo had been able to pull through because of the financial support it received from the Perak government.
"The Taiping Zoo and Night Safari comes under the Taiping Municipal Council's purview and therefore, we receive funding from the state government.
"So in terms of operational cost, we have no problems with continuing to look after our animals.
"We are also grateful that the state has allocated RM1.91 million for the 2020-2021 financial year," he told the New Straits Times.
Lazarus, who is also the chairman of the Malaysian Association of Zoological Parks and Aquaria, said the zoo also sought and benefited from federal aid.
He added that operational costs for the Taiping Zoo amounted to about RM400,000 a month.
He also acknowledged that the zoo's revenue had dipped as it experienced a drop in visitors.
"During the MCO period, the zoo was closed from March 15 to June 15. So, there was no revenue at all. But income started flowing in during the Recovery MCO as we allowed visitors to enter the zoo with strict standard operating procedures in place.
"Under the current CMCO, the number of visitors has dropped again since most of our visitors usually come from outside the Taiping district."
Lazarus said that privately-operated zoos, such as Zoo Negara, might have to grapple with financial predicaments due to the movement restrictions.
"Zoos that are privately-run depend on revenue from visitors to finance their operations. So when revenue drops, it will definitely hurt their operations."