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Jurnal Ekonomi Malaysia

52 (1) 2018 105 – 115

Does Country with Multi-ethnic, Multi-linguistic and Multi-religious Society Induce Tourist Arrivals? Worldwide Evidence
Adakah Masyarakat Negara yang Berbilang Etnik, Berbilang Bahasa dan Berbilang Ugama Boleh Menarik Kedatangan Pelancong? Bukti Seluruh Dunia

Faculty of Economics and Management
Universiti Putra Malaysia
43400 UPM Serdang, Selangor
Malaysia

muzafar@upm.edu.my

School of Government
College of Law, Government and International Studies
Universiti Utara Malaysia
06010 UUM Sintok, Kedah
Malaysia

badariahdin@uum.edu.my

Faculty of Management
Multimedia University
Persiaran Multimedia
63100 Cyberjaya, Selangor
Malaysia

shtan@mmu.edu.my

Abstract

The tourism sector contributes foreign exchange earnings to the nation; tax revenue to the government; and provide jobs to the population as well as open-up business opportunities to the communities. Thus, international tourist arrivals play a central role in stimulating economic growth by ensuring substantial export income in the form of international tourist expenditures to a destination country. A fundamental question that relates international visitors and the destination country is: “Does diversity play an important role in promoting tourism?” Studies have found that ethno-linguistic diversity affect a country’s tourism competitiveness negatively. This is because high levels of ethnic diversity tend to be associated with low investment, poor governance as a result of poor communication, low collective action and weak cohesion due to differences in ethnic groups’ value system. In this study, using a sample of 126 countries, our results suggest that ethnic, linguistic, and religious fractionalization negatively affected the destination choice of international tourist arrivals. Nevertheless, national income and safety of a country have positive impact on tourist arrivals, but air pollution affects negatively tourist arrivals to a destination country. Some policy implications that would promote tourism are that a country needs to promote and portray multi-racial country that are safe, peoples enjoy diversity in culture and lived in harmony; good facilities and infrastructure related to tourism; and less pollution.

Keywords

cross-country analysis; diversity; tourism demand; tourist arrivals

Author’s Acknowledgement

Funding for this project comes from the Fundamental Research Grant Scheme (Grant No. 05-01-16-1784FR) provided by the Ministry of Higher Education (MOHE) Malaysia.

http://dx.doi.org/10.17576/JEM-2018-5201-9
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Habibullah, , Haji Din, , & Tan, (2018). Does Country with Multi-ethnic, Multi-linguistic and Multi-religious Society Induce Tourist Arrivals? Worldwide Evidence. Jurnal Ekonomi Malaysia, 52(1), 105–115. http://dx.doi.org/10.17576/JEM-2018-5201-9

@article{habibullah2018country,
  title={Does Country with Multi-ethnic, Multi-linguistic and Multi-religious Society Induce Tourist Arrivals? Worldwide Evidence},
  author={Habibullah, Muzafar and Haji Din, Badariah and Tan, Siow-Hooi},
  journal={Jurnal Ekonomi Malaysia},
  volume={52},
  number={1},
  pages={105—115},
 

year={2018},
}

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