Crime Rate and Tourism

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CHAPTER 1 INTRODUCTION Tourism is travel for recreational, leisure or business purposes. The World Tourism Organization defines tourists as people "traveling to and staying in places outside their usual environment for not more than one consecutive year for leisure, business and other purposes". Malaysia is recognized globally as one of the leading tourism destinations, ranking in the top 10 in arrivals and top 15 in global receipts. The tourism industry is also an important contributor to our economy, generating RM36.9 billion in gross national income (GNI) in 2009. This makes tourism the fifth largest industry in our economy after Oil, Gas and Energy, Financial Services, Wholesale and Retail, and Palm Oil. By 2020, it is expected tourism industry will contribute RM103.6 billion in GNI, with arrivals increasing from 24 million in 2009 to 36 million in 2020. In most advanced western economies there has been a rapid increase, particularly since World War II, in disposable income, discretionary time, mobility, and level of education. This has resulted in dramatic increase in the demand for leisure activities. Until the 1970s, tourism was not regarded as an important economic activity in Malaysia. The Tourism Development Corporation of Malaysia (TDC) was set up in 1972, with the responsibility to act as a development authority, but the sector was given a low priority. But partly to limited financial allocations, TDC faced constraints in the effective performance of its role. As a result, Malaysia remained a relatively unknown destination, while other countries in the region such as Singapore, Thailand and Indonesia built on their established reputations as mass tourism destinations. During the 1980s, tourism became an increasingly important industry worldwide. Investment in new facilities and capital equipment reached around $US 350 million per year,

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