HOMESTAY PROGRAMME AS CATALYST TO LOCAL BUSINESSES: A CASE STUDY ON BANGHURIS HOMESTAY, MALAYSIA

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1 HOMESTAY PROGRAMME AS CATALYST TO LOCAL BUSINESSES: A CASE STUDY ON BANGHURIS HOMESTAY, MALAYSIA Che Musa Che Omar 1, Hilyati Abdul Ghaffar 2, Amirul Imran Mohd Ali 3, Noormuthaah Mohamad Ali Adaha 4 chemusa@unikl.edu.my, cool_7377@yahoo.com, amirullaw@yahoo.com, ruhiyah88@gmail.com UniKL Business School, Universiti Kuala Lumpur Abstract The Homestay Programme in Malaysia was first introduced by the Ministry of Tourism in 1988 as an effort to diversify tourism products through the provision of an alternative accommodation for tourists but not until 1995 that it has become increasingly popular among local and foreign tourists. To date, there are a total of 166 registered homestays spreading all over Malaysia and this paper is to examine its marketing aspect in the implementation of the programme with special reference to one of the most successful homestay in Banghuris, Selangor. Some homestays are in a cosy hinterland and some are in the vicinity of major towns an hour s drive from Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia s capital city. The main purpose of this study is to evaluate the marketing strategies through community-based approach as a catalyst for local economy and businesses. The focus areas are on homestay programme and local businesses through reviewing relevant secondary sources which highlighted community involvement in the marketing of the programme. This study discussed the several critical success factors of Banghuris Homestay as envisaged by government incentives on the programme. The content analysis methods was used in this study to review documented sources and a qualitative approach using face to face interview with the local homestay operators. The findings of this study shows that homestay programme was a catalyst for local businesses via marketing programme on domestics and international tourists as one of government strategy to improve community-based tourism for better living standard as well as improvement of infrastructural facilities and entrepreneurship. Keywords: Tourist Destination. Homestay, Community-Based Tourism, Marketing, Entrepreneurship, 1 Che Musa PhD., Professor of Management at UniKL Business School 2 Hilyati Abdul Ghaffar MBA, Doctoral candidate at UniKL Business School 3 Amirul Imran Mohd Ali, MCL, Doctoral candidate at UniKL Business School 4 Noormuthaah Mohamad Ali Adaha, Master of Management candidate at UniKL Business School 1

2 1.0 Introduction Initiative to develop homestay programme in Malaysia was started in 1988 at Desa Murni Homestay located in Temerloh, Pahang (Kalsom, 2007; 2009). Due to the success of the programme, the homestay programme has become government strategy to upgrade locals living quality through Community-Based Tourism (CBT). The government objective is to generate income to the local community and by promoting Malaysia as a tourist destination by highlighting the cultures of Malaysian people. Any Homestay operator must register with Ministry of Tourism and Culture (MOTAC) and abide with the criteria set by the Ministry in order to get the support from the government and relevant agencies. The rapid development of homestay programme has seen as good demand from local and international tourists. However, the success of this programmes are depending to particular operators and communities in certain villages (Arif Kamisan & Honggen Xiao, 2013). Some homestay operators stalled to operate due to low demand from tourist that generated zero income. As such new strategy and approach has to be devised by the Ministry of Tourism (MOTOUR) in 1995 in providing an alternative accommodation for tourists with local tourism products. In 2013 there were 166 registered homestay with 3,431 participants as illustrated in Table 1.1 below. NO Table 1.1 Homestay Statistic in Malaysia, 2013 REGISTERED PARTICIPATING NO. OF STATE HOMESTAY VILLAGES PARTICIPANTS NO. OF ROOMS 1 Perlis Kedah Pulau Pinang Perak Selangor Melaka Negeri Sembilan Johor Kelantan Terengganu Pahang Sarawak Sabah Labuan TOTAL ,431 4,779 Source: Tourism Development Centre (TDC), Ministry of Tourism and Culture (MOTAC),

3 2.0 The Community-Based Tourism (CBT) The Community-Based Tourism (CBT) is able to create job opportunity, increase community s income level, improves infrastructure for residents, understand the cultures and the way of living of local community as well as providing opportunities for entrepreneurs. As such the local community active participation in the tourism activities is vital in providing services to tourists by offering them to stay in the chosen village and experiencing the village lifestyle to cherish for a lifetime. However, the involvement of the local community is mainly based on the advantages possessed in their area. For the most part, the definitions of CBT are almost similar that is to increase local people s involvement and ownership of tourism at the destination. Since CBT is seen as a medium to generate economic growth in rural areas, there are a number of marketing strategies that have been identified to promote local businesses through cooperation between the stakeholders (government agencies, private sectors and the local community) in the tourism areas. Generally, the local community has the opportunity to involve themselves in business such tourist guides, handicrafts makers, food vendors, homestay operators and many more. In return, it would also improve the access to infrastructures and facilities such as roads, public transport, electric and water supply and many others. At the same time CBT has also received a high level of criticism from the research and donor communities, accused of failing to deliver benefits to communities and questioning whether the results justify the donor funding. In a critical paper about CBT in Latin America, Mitchell and Muckosy (2008) report lack of financial viability, poor market access and poor governance. Their conclusion was that the critical factors for the success of these initiatives were access to market, commercial viability, the presence of a policy framework and implementation challenges, i.e. the existence of skills and collaboration among stakeholders (Ashley et al, 2001). Lack of financial viability is particularly relevant to CBT projects that offer accommodation as they require a higher level of investment and in most cases achieve very low occupancy (Mitchell & Muckosy, 2008). Poor market access is one of the factors contributing to CBT s financial failure. The lack of business skills of local communities as to how to commercialize their product and minimal cooperation with tourism enterprises that would bring much needed expertise together with remote inaccessible locations or inadequate products have all been factors that make it difficult for CBT projects to access the market (Epler Wood, 2008, Scheyvens, 2007, Mitchell & Muckosy, 2008). 3

4 With regards to poor governance, CBT approaches tend to assume that communities are homogenous and have shared interests, whereas in reality they comprise complex relationships of class, gender and ethnicity in which certain individuals or families possess privileged status. The imposition of democratic processes on such communities has proved ineffective, as it is often traditional authorities that take crucial decisions (Scheyvens, 2007). Thus, from the economic perspective, many researchers conclude that tourism generates various economic benefits such as foreign-exchange inflows (Mathieson and Wall, 1982), employment opportunities (Manson and Cheyne, 2000), increase in personal income (Martin, 1995), improved economic structure and higher standard of living (Allen et al., Moreover, the development of rural homestay is expected to become a main contributor in marketing its local products from business perspective. The Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) (1994) defines rural tourism as tourism taking place in the countryside. Reichel et al. (2000) associate the term with rural areas, special features of the rural world, small-scale enterprises, open space, and sustainability. Meantime, scholars have proposed various interpretations of rural tourism. Bramwell and Lane (1994) relate it with activities and interest in farms, nature, adventure, sports, health, education arts, and heritage. According to Gartner (2004), there are indications that demand for rural-based tourism will continue to grow. Many small firms in rural areas are created to respond to the attractions of rural places (Irvine and Anderson, 2004). Brown and Hall (1999) argue that a place that is remote and difficult to reach may be perceived by tourists to have certain qualities symptomatic of its situation, such as natural beauty, quietness, and uniqueness. Hence, the roles played by government and local community in the promotion of entrepreneurship and marketing for ecotourism are considered vital. Efforts to promote entrepreneurship include creation and combination of existing resources to develop and commercialize new products, and thus serve new customers and markets (Schendel and Hitt, 2007). 3.0 Homestay in Malaysia Homestay programme has attracted not only international tourist but also local tourist living in cities to experience the real village life. Malaysian homestays offers an opportunity for visitors to stay at a village or traditional Malay village. The villages that participate in the homestay programme are carefully selected and comply with the strict guidelines set by the Malaysian Ministry of Tourism. Homestay villages can be 4

5 found in every state. Some homestays are tucked away cozily in the hinterland, while others are situated in the vicinity of major towns and are easily accessible. Given the varied locations and settings, every homestay village presents a different and enjoyable experience. Harvesting local crops, visiting a fish farm or learning how to make traditional delicacies are only a sprinkling of the many things await visitors. Indulge in traditional pastimes such as kite-flying and top spinning. Cottage industries such as batik-painting and songket-weaving are other interesting pursuits, commonly found in the east coast states of Kelantan and Terengganu. In the evenings, visitors will be entertained by cultural performances or even a mock-wedding that showcases the local customs and rituals. A homestay programmed is suitable for al types of holidaymakers, be it families, students or corporate groups. The simplicity of the kampong folk, along with the engaging pastimes that are found in a homestay, creates a unique and memorable vacation. In Malaysian context, the homestay programmed is government strategies which was introduced by the Ministry of Tourism in 1988 to attract tourists visiting the rural areas and in return will increase the activities in the area. The programme is listed under the Rural Tourism Key Plan that aims to encourage the involvement of local community in the tourism sector. Ever since the homestay programme was introduced, the responses are very much encouraging whereby the tourists are given the opportunity to experience living with the host family and involve with their daily routine activities (Boonratana, 2010; Amran Hamzah & Hairul Nizam Ismail, 2003). 4.0 Case Study: Banghuris Homestay, Selangor For the purpose of discussion in this study, the Banghuris Homestay in Selangor will be analysed. In selangor, the Banghuris Homestay dominants the largest number of participants which is 87 people the number of room offered is 100 rooms (see Table 1.2). Banghuris Homestay is a joined of three villages namely Kampung Bukit Bangkong, Kampung Hulu Chucoh and Kampung Hulu Teris. These three villages are located closed to each other in Sepang district, 60 km from Kuala Lumpur and 30 km or about ½ drive from the Kuala Lumpur International Airport (KLIA) and KLIA2. The idea of introducing Banghuris Homestay is initiated when Kampung Hulu Chucoh has won the Selangor State Level Best Village Competition in The winning has attracted many visitors to visit the village to enjoy its beauty. Realizing the potential of the area, the villagers have taken the initiatives to develop the village 5

6 Table 1.2 Statistic of Homestay Participants in Selangor, 2013 NO HOMESTAY VILLAGES NO. OF 1 2 Homestay Air Manis, Sabak Bernam Homestay Banghuris, Sepang 3 Homestay Bouganvilles, Sg. Kertas, Gombak 4 Homestay Sg Haji Dorani, Sabak Bernam 5 Homestay Kanchong Darat, Kuala Langat 6 Homestay Kg Kundang, Kuala Langat 7 Homestay Kg Batu Laut, Kuala Langat 8 Homestay Seri Kayangan, Sabak Bernam 1. Kg Batu 37 Darat 2. Kg Batu Kg Tebuk Mufrad 4. Kg Batu 37 Sekandi 5. Kg Batu 2 6. Kg Batu Tebuk Pulai 7. Kg Parit 6 Tengah 1. Kg Bukit Bangkung 2. Kg Ulu Chucoh 3. Kg Ulu Teris NO. OF PARTICIPANTS ROOMS Kg Sungai Kertas Kg Sg Hj Dorani 2. Kg Piket Kg Sungai Leman 4. Kg Parot 2 5. Kg Sungai Nipah Kg Kanchong Darat Kg Kundang Kg Batu Laut Kg Tebuk Baru 2. Kg Bagan Terap Homestay Sg Lang Tengah, Kuala Langat 10 Homestay Papitusulem, Sabak Bernam 11 Homestay Sepintas, Sabak Bernam 12 Homestay Batu 23, Sg Nibong, Sabak Bernam 13 Homestay Sg Sireh, Kuala Selangor 1. Kg Sungai Lang Kg Parit 7 2. Kg Parit 6 3. Kg Sg Labu Batu 4, Sepintas Kg Batu 23 Sg. Nibong Kg Sg Sireh 2. Kg Ampangan 3. Kg Parit 2 4. Kg Parit 3 5 Kg Sawah Sepadan Kg Endah Homestay Kg Endah, Kuala Langat Kg Sg Tengi Homestay Sg Tenggi, Hulu Selangor TOTAL Source: Tourism Development Centre (TDC), Ministry of Tourism and Culture (MOTAC) 6

7 to be a homestay based tourism area. Numerous parties have given their support when it comes to developing the homestay programme in this area, some of which are the Sepang District Municipal Council, the Ministry of Culture, Art and Tourism which was then known as Ministry of Tourism and Culture (MOTAC) and various travel agencies. The Banghuris Homestay is the only homestay in the Sepang District with Javanese Malay background. One of the interesting activities in Sepang is to visit palm plantations, rubber plantation, coffee farms, fruit orchards and SME. In addition to this, a variety of unique local cultural activities, which have become tourist attraction are also offered. Other than visits to the palm plantations and rubber plantations, these activities include visits to the historical place in Bukit Bangkong, visits to processing areas of SME, experiencing the Malays wedding package, witnessing and taking parts in cultural activities as well as in the activities of handicraft making. The Banghuris Homestay has won numerous awards and recognition such as the winner of Zon Tengah Level Ilham Desa Competition in 2003 and then the winner in the national level of the same competition in 2005, the sixth Ministry of Tourism Award as well as the Malaysia s Best Homestay Award in Unquestionably, the implementation of the homestay programme is able to attract large number of tourist to visit the rural areas to enjoy the beauty of nature and at the same time, learn and be aware of the Malaysian cultures. 5.0 Methodology The methodology employed in the study involves secondary resources due to limited time constraint to do field work-study and also the financial limitation involved. Hence for the purpose of this research, secondary data from certain reliable sources were found to be most useful for this study. Secondary data is data which already exist and which were collected for some other purpose but which can be used a second time in the current project where the researcher is the secondary user Veal, Data was gathered from books, newspaper reports, articles, academic journals and other relevant documents related to Homestay via personal effort and electronically. Content analysis from the previous research findings and updated statistics about Homestay were also taken into consideration. All the findings and data gathered throughout this study has been critically interpreted and presented in the analysis section. Interpretation or the qualitative approach enables one to explore the richness, depth and understanding the phenomena. 7

8 Holsti, O. (1968) defined content analysis as any technique for making inferences systematically and objectively. Categories of the data are created which are then assessed and evaluated to derive findings and conclusions. Furthermore, Hakim (1982 cited by Finn et.al, 2000), mentioned that secondary data allows the researcher to think more closely about the theoretical aims and substantive issues of the study instead of spending most of the time thinking about the problem of collecting new data. By gathering the content analysis from the previous research studies, this will assist in answering the research questions to be analyzed and interpreted further in the step towards understanding the arising phenomena. The content analysis process will be summarized whereby firstly, the existing data will be reduced into several categories that generalized the themes of the documents obtained and secondly, the text will be further elaborated to explain its context and interpretation. The aim of the study is to find out the challenges faced by Homestay operators and also how the Homestay programme have been progressing in developing the communities in Malaysia. 6.0 Data Analysis The analysis presented in this study is general and still needs further in-depth research in order to identify the valid benefit of the homestay tourism which in line with the CBT in Malaysia. The research finding is obtained from the analysis of various secondary sources and face to face interview of the homestay operators. According to Fauziah & Rezuan (2012), they claim that the implementation of the homestay programme in Banghuris has lead to apparent changes in the rural areas, some of which are the increase in various public facilities and the increase of households income rate. It shows that there is an obvious positive socio-economic change in the participants and homestay owners after they become involved in this recently introduced tourism product. Up till December 2013, the number of registration for homestay in Malaysia is 166 which involve 298 villages and 3,431 participants joined in this programme (see Table 1.1). The total number of arrival tourist to homestay for year 2013 are 350,954 which an increase of 7.9% compared to year Form total tourist arrival, the number of domestic tourists has increased to 11.1% while the arrivals of international tourists has shown a decline of 4.5% as compared to year Hence, The Homestay programme has not only attracts the interest of domestics tourist but also international 8

9 tourists such as Singapore, Japan, Europe, Australia, Indonesia and many more (see Table 1.3). The total receipt for year 2013 is RM21.5 million which is an increase of 16.3% as compared to Indirectly, the local community would involves in providing services needed by a tourist and this would benefit the locals in terms of economic opportunities and rural development in the area. Table 1.3. Analysis number of Tourists arrival and Receipt until December 2013 NO Description Jan Dec 2013 Jan Dec 2012 Percentage (%) 1 Number of Tourists - Domestic - International 350, ,107 62, , ,423 65, Total Receipt (RM) 21, , Source: Tourism Development Centre (TDC), Ministry of Tourism and Culture (MOTAC) On the whole, research have shown that rural tourism gives positive impacts to the local community, economically and socially. Similarly, tourism based on homestay programme in rural areas is hoped to be able to improve the living status of the local community. This proves that the Banghuris homestay is a long-standing Malay settlement, rich in a variety of customs and cultural heritage. Other than that, the economic activity is centred on subsistence farming. Taken as a whole, before the implementation of the homestay programme in this area, most of the local people in these three villages similar to the other surrounding villages, worked as farmers with elementary education. Furthermore, the local community in these villages still strongly adhered to the local traditional customs and cultures. 7.0 Discussion & Findings This study shows the socio-economic impact on the Homestay Programme has had the communities involved. Stakeholders must think through strategies and programs to encourage local community to participate in the Homestay Programme. Income and environment are main motivational factors in becoming a homestay operator in the program. Proper and long-term planning is a crucial component that stakeholders need to focus on in order to sustain the program and empower the communities. Critical success indicators of community capacity building include local participation, knowledge and skills of the local community, leadership, community structure, a sense of community, and external partnership. Success in these areas will result in more 9

10 effective development of the Homestay Programme in Malaysia. A part from that, entrepreneurship programmes will help the rural community to set up small or medium business and teach them how to access business opportunities by linking them to local producers and suppliers so that their products and services are supplied to these entrepreneurs. Examples of local services that can be outsourced are catering, cultural shows and demonstrations, landscaping, rental of canopy, tables and chairs and local transportation. Examples of some local products that can be produced by these small or medium businesses are handicrafts, batik, woodcarvings and pottery. This program will help educate rural entrepreneurs, build networks for them and instill a sense of communal attachment and pride for the members of the community besides elevating them from the poverty line. However, in this study it was also found that homestay programme can contribute to some negative impacts. Unhealthy cultures could be introduced to the rural communities which could lead to a loss of identity for the locals and lead to cultural degradation. It is often difficult though not impossible for the local village communities to meet the high tourist expectations of service quality such as clean and comfortable accommodation, tour guides who are conversant in foreign languages, food that is more palatable for Westerners and a pollution free environment. Finally, the rural youngsters when exposed to outsiders could be influenced to migrate to the urban areas in search of better job opportunities as jobs in the villages are centered on agro tourism. Table 1.4. Homestay Performance Report from 2011 to 2013 NO DESCRIPTION TOURISTS % TOURISTS % TOURISTS % Domestic 1 Tourist 195, , , International 2 Tourist 59, , , Total No. of Tourist 254, , , Total Receipts (RM) 15,736, ,545, ,570, Source: Tourism Development Centre (TDC), Ministry of Tourism and Culture (MOTAC) 10

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