COMCEC Tourism Outlook-2016
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there is no applicable standard in place, guidelines can serve as a set of criteria or requirements,
which consist of recommended, non-mandatory controls that are used as a reference.
Muslim travelers have their own needs and requirements in line with their faith and these
requirements sometimes may differ from the conventional tourists’ needs. Especially in
accommodation facilities, Muslim tourists have specific needs; such as certified halal food, clean
prayer and ablution facilities, iftar and sahoor services during the Holy month of Ramadan,
recreational facilities with privacy and a decent environment for families, etc. However as
highlighted above, despite the increasing number of Muslim tourists and a huge demand for
Halal/Muslim Friendly products and services worldwide, in some countries, there are no
specific regulations for MFT, such as guidelines, standards or other regulations. In OIC Member
Countries, among others, only Malaysia, Turkey and Indonesia have such MFT regulations.
Moreover, in some non-OIC Countries, such as Thailand, Japan, Philippines, there are some
initiatives for establishing MFT standards or guidelines.
According to many researchers, one of the main challenges in MFT sector is the lack of standards
and regulations for MFT accommodation establishments (Abdul Hamid, 2010; Birchall, 2009;
Henderson, 2010; Rosenberg& Choufany, 2009; Siddiqui, 2011). This challenge increases the
costs of companies, since they have to follow different practices in this field. In addition to this,
Muslim tourists also face with different practices of companies regarding MFT services.
Therefore, developing MFT regulations in the OIC member states will greatly help to meet the
needs of the Muslim travelers as well as companies to provide MFT services with better quality.
In summary, COMCEC tries to analyze MFT market for OIC member states in three segments.
Firstly, the demand and supply sides of MFT in the OIC member countries are considered on a
preferential basis. Secondly, developing and marketing of MFT products and services will be
discussed among the OIC member states. Finally, last segment will be developing regulations for
accommodation establishments to improve MFT among OIC member states.