HONG KONG (AFP) — The Hong Kong government has urged Disney to improve its management of the local theme park after failing to attract the visitor numbers hoped for, an official said Wednesday.
Frederick Ma, secretary for commerce and economic development, said the two-year-old attraction has strengthened Hong Kong's brand as a culturally diverse society and its position as a major tourism centre in the region.
But while it has also boosted job opportunities -- it is one of the largest employers of full-time entertainment staff in the territory -- Ma said the park had attracted less than the five-and-a-half-million visitors expected in its second year of operation.
"Notwithstanding these benefits, the first two years of Hong Kong Disneyland's operation was not satisfactory and the park is still taking time to adapt to the local operational environment," Ma said in the Legislative Council in its weekly meeting.
"The government will continue to urge the park management to formulate cost-effective business strategies, improve the park's operational efficiency and work more closely with the local travel trade," he added.
Hong Kong Disneyland, 57-percent owned by the government, drew around 5.2-million visitors in its first year, but reports have suggested it struggled to reach four-million visitors in its second, well below its capacity of 34,000 a day.
Last month, Ma told the Standard newspaper that the park is too small -- one of the reasons why it has failed to draw in visitors.
He said the government is considering investing more cash into the theme park to help it expand.
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