(KPL) ASEAN has agreed to promote lesser-known tourist areas and destinations around the region that are capable of attracting tourists, said the Secretary-General of the Malaysian Ministry of Tourism, Arts, and Culture, Datuk Roslan Abdul Rahman.

He said the effort is to enable tourists not to just focus on a few well-known destinations.

“ASEAN Tourism Ministers did not discuss overtourism but discussed opening up less popular areas.

“This is to provide access to ASEAN member countries to not just focus on one or two places, but provide opportunities for tourists to take the opportunity to visit areas they call the secondary and tertiary areas,” he said.

Roslan said this during a press conference in conjunction with the last day of the ASEAN Tourism Forum (ATF) 2025 here today.

Apart from that, when asked whether Malaysia was facing a situation of overtourism, Roslan said that Malaysia had plans to ensure that tourist areas in the country did not face that situation.

“I think we (Malaysia) have planned tourist attractions well and ensured that we do not experience the problem of overtourism.

“Thank God, there are still many tourism products that we have not introduced to tourists,” he added.

Previously, Tourism Malaysia Director-General Datuk P. Manoharan said that Malaysia was working to address the risk of excess tourists by focusing on sustainable tourism practices and infrastructure development to protect the country’s natural and cultural heritage.

He added that although Malaysia has not yet faced a widespread tourist surplus, some tourist locations, such as Semporna and Sabah, have started to face problems.

In this regard, he stressed the importance of conserving the locations involved as well as improving infrastructure in areas that have great potential for sustainable tourism.

KPL