Four new river trails in Negri Sembilan

THE Negri Sembilan government has identified four river trail locations as new tourist attractions in the state under the National River Trail Programme.

Menteri Besar Datuk Seri Aminuddin Harun said four river trails are located in Kuala Pilah, Tampin, Jempol and Rembau, involving 1km per district.

“First, we proposed 10 areas but we identified four. Building these river trails will include the construction of pedestrian walkways, cycling paths, and infrastructure facilities for the public,” he said to the media at an event in Port Dickson recently,

He said, to date, the existing river trails in the state are 52.23km long.

Meanwhile, commenting on the Rm15bil Kuala Linggi International Port (KLIP) project, Aminuddin said the state government had sent a letter to the Melaka state government to fine tune the project before agreeing on the matter.

He, however, said the Negri Sembilan state government did not have any problems or obstacles regarding the project if it was implemented in Melaka.

“We have no issues but we will object if they (Melaka state government) do not abide by the rules and the fishermen are not given the due attention,” he added.

At another event, Aminuddin also said that the state government targets to draw eight million tourists next year after the country gradually recovers from the Covid19 pandemic.

He said of the total, 70% of the tourists are expected to visit Port

Dickson, based on the number of tourist arrivals in 2019

“After Covid-19, we are ready with a new product that will definitely make Port Dickson a major attraction.

“The tourism sector has been affected since 2020 and this year, the country is still facing challenges but we can see that the situation is improving now,” he said.

He said the 2.02ha water park is Port Dickson’s latest attraction.

“In Jelebu district, we are focusing on eco-tourism while in Jempol and Rembau, the state government is planning to upgrade the area around Gunung Datok which is one of the tourist attractions here,” he said.

Agrotourism attractions

Elsewhere, the local agrotourism industry raked in Rm20.3mil in 2020, with over 1.7 million visitors recorded, according to Agriculture and Food Industry Ministry secretary-general Datuk Haslina Abdul Hamid.

She said, however, the total is less compared to the Rm33.5mil recorded in 2019, along with 2.7 million visitors to agrotourism areas.

“The decline is due to the Covid19 pandemic, which has also impacted agrotourism operators in the country.

“When restrictions are eased for this economic sector, we will encourage agrotourism operators to hold promotions in order to boost their income,” she said at an event in Temerloh, Pahang recently.

According to Haslina, her ministry has also allocated grants to help agrotourism operators to enhance their services in terms of infrastructure and promotions.

She added that assistance worth Rm16.03mil has been channelled to 143 agrotourism centres, encompassing crops, fisheries and livestock sectors under the 11th Malaysia Plan. For the 12th Malaysia Plan, Rm30mil has been allocated with a maximum of RM200,000 per recipient.

Commenting on the planting of vanilla, she said currently 500 operators are involved in the sector and the agency within her ministry is ready to provide guidance to anyone who is interested to venture into the field.