Muslim Friendly Tourism (MFT):
Understanding the Supply and Demand Sides
In the OIC Member Countries
13
Literature Review
The available literature on MFT is very limited. The main sources of market-oriented literature
on the MFT market in the last few years have been from CrescentRating and Thomson Reuters.
The academic literature was reviewed and referenced in the study in relevant parts of the
study. United Nations World Tourism Organization (UNWTO) literature was also reviewed and
referenced in relation to overall tourism trends and statistics.
The following Reports by CrescentRating have been reviewed.
 Global Muslim Lifestyle Travel Market 2012
 Fukuoka City Study
 MasterCard-CrescentRating Global Muslim Travel Index (GMTI) 2015
 MasterCard-CrescentRating Muslim Travel Shopping Index (MTSI) 2015
 Muslim Halal Travel Market Basic Concepts Terms and Definitions, by CrescentRating,
August 2015
 eBooks, guides and Rating Standards
Below is a brief summary on the relevance of the above reports to the study.
 Fukuoka City Study. The objective of the Fukuoka study was to enable the Japanese
authorities to better understand its current positioning in terms of the MFT market
offerings of hotels, restaurants, airports, shopping malls, transport, tourist attractions,
mosques and the hospitality industry in general in Fukuoka. The study helped develop
the framework for Muslim friendly tourism.
 Global Muslim Lifestyle Travel Market. This study helped in defining the key themes
for Muslim friendly travel and faith-based needs of Muslim travelers.
Thomson Reuters State of Global Islamic Economy report defines and provides a view of the
Islamic economy as well as its potential to facilitate investments and industry growth. This
report was first published in 2013 and then in 2015. The report covers a number of sections
from fashion to media and recreation and pharmaceuticals. Travel and Halal food is also
covered but is only one section of the entire report.
Islamic Tourism Centre (ITC) of Malaysia has developed tourism guidelines to become a more
Muslim-friendly nation. The guidelines – called MS2610:2015 Muslim-Friendly Hospitality
Services Requirements – are set up to preserve and protect the integrity of “Islamic tourism
products and services”. The ITC report covers the criteria for Malaysia to become Muslim
friendly and includes guidelines on prayer facilities at tourist spots and public premises
(hospitals, offices, R&R, shopping complexes), access to Halal food for Muslim tourists
(including fast food outlets) and hotel services toward Muslim tourists.
Review of Conferences and Exhibitions
Since 2009, the topic of MFT has been covered in many conferences. Initially it has been
discussed as one of the topics in general halal and Muslim consumer related conferences.
However, in the last couple of years, standalone conferences dedicated to the MFT market have
emerged. These include the 1st Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) International Forum
on Islamic Tourism on 2-3 June 2014 hosted by Indonesia, the Halal Tourism Conference 2014