First RM22m Islamic-themed hotel to be set up in Pantai Puteri, Melaka

Majlis Agama Islam Melaka (Maim) and Jabatan Wakaf, Zakat dan Haji (Jawhar) will set up the country's first Islamic-themed hotel costing RM22 million at Pantai Puteri in Tanjung Kling, Melaka. Minister in the Prime Minister's Department, Datuk Seri Dr Ahmad Zahid Hamidi, said the eight-storey hotel will be of three-star status with 99 rooms.
"The hotel based on Islamic concept will be a model of wakaf development for all state Islamic affairs councils, encouraging them to give attention to the commercial aspect," he told reporters at the hotel's ground-breaking ceremony in Tanjung Kling on Feb 23. Also present was MAIM deputy chairman Ghazale Mohamad, who represented Melaka Chief Minister Datuk Seri Mohd Ali Rustam.
Ahmad Zahid said under the Ninth Malaysia Plan, the federal government through Jawhar has allocated RM256.5 million for the development of wakaf land (trust property) nationwide.
"The Islamic-themed hotel is among the 19 projects being developed by Jawhar with the cooperation of Islamic affairs councils," he added. Ahmad Zahid said the hotel, to be managed jointly by Maim and Yayasan Wakaf Malaysia, will provide facilities, support services and food which meet Islamic requirements.
The hotel, he said, will have a multi-purpose hall, seminar room, office and surau with the first phase having started on Jan 15, 2009, and is due for completion on July 14, 2010. — Bernama