Northstar

www.travelweekly-asia.com 17 OCTOBER 2019 D AY 2 TRAVEL WEEKLY ASIA I T B A S I A S H O W D A I L I E S 14 Good tidings ahead for Visit Malaysia 2020 By S.S. YOGA The country's 2020 campaign to attract tourists and business travellers is good news for the MICE segment V isit Malaysia 2020 (VM2020) is soon upon us and there is plenty to rejoice for visitors to Malaysia. In line with the government's business tourism target of RM$3.9 billion (US$930 million) and 2.9 million business event visitors, the Malaysia Convention & Exhibition Bureau (MyCEB) is working with various partners to bring in more business. For instance, MyCEB is supporting CEMS Conference & Exhibition (Malaysia) Sdn Bhd to hold the country's first ever dedicated travel trade show, the Malaysia Tourism and Travel Mart (MTTM 2020), in June 25-27 next year, according to CEO of MyCEB Datuk Zulkefli Sharif. The event is expected to bring in an estimated RM$25.1 million. Another highlight, said Datuk Zulkefli, is the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation. Set to take Agent's Take "With VM2020 approaching, I'm hoping this would enable newly emerging markets for Malaysia such as North Africa and Eastern Europe, as well as more flights into Kuala Lumpur International Airport from China and Europe. Other areas on my wish list are a fully operational Resorts World Genting as well as an improvement in immigration counter services." – Datuk Tan Kok Liang, general manager of Borneo Trails, Tours & Travel and president of the Malaysian Association of Tour and Travel Agents Fly into Malaysia to a rich and varied culture – the art of flying the traditional Kelantanese kite, the wau, which is also the symbol of the national airline. CREDIT: TOURISM MALAYSIA place from December 2019 to November 2020, the event is expected to draw 16,000 delegates. To date, MyCEB and its partners have already secured 36 business events for 2020 with an estimated economic impact of RM$529.8 million. Sarawak on the rise Sarawak's capital city Kuching has overtaken Penang in the 2018 International Congress and Convention Association rankings, which placed Kuching at 143rd and Penang at 208th. The Malaysian state's MICE business is comprised of 80% associations, 15% corporate meetings and incentives and 5% exhibitions, according to BESarawak's CEO Amelia Roziman. Several campaigns are in the works, said Ms Roziman, such as the BESLegacy that focuses on the impact to the community from business events and BEStribe that do corporate meetings and incentives. The state will also welcome several unique venues such as the Sarawak Museum Campus, the Borneo Samariang Resort City, and the 22-storey Hikmah Exchange (the first fibre optics-installed building in Sarawak) in Kuching. Happenings in the west Kuala Lumpur has always been the poster child for Malaysia's MICE. One of its largest event spaces Kuala Lumpur Convention Centre is set to expand by 10,000sqm and has already secured 20 events for 2020. Also, the Malaysia International Trade and Exhibition Centre has secured 21 events to date. Neighbouring Selangor is upping its ante with plans to form a dedicated business VISIT: BOOTH B05, B09 BASEMENT 2 More air connectivity Currently, 61 foreign airlines from over 100 countries serve Malaysia. Thanks to an incentive fund of RM$20million, the result of a collaboration between Tourism Malaysia and Malaysia Airports Holdings Bhd, there has been a take-up rate of 32% by both local and foreign airlines such as Condor Air, Air Arabia and Busan Air to open up new routes to the country. In Sarawak, over 800 international and domestic flights service the state, with an expected new route from Singapore to Sibu, and the return of Brunei Airlines' flights to Kuching. To encourage more passengers to connect via Malaysia, all airports other than the Kuala Lumpur International Airport will see revised lower airport/passenger fees from next year. events bureau, according to Ahmad Nazri Tashriq, Tourism Selangor's corporate communications manager. Its largest convention facility Setia City Convention Centre (SCCC) has seen 77 international and domestic bookings this year, with one event hosting 10,000 30 30 million targeted total arrivals to Malaysia in 2020 84.1 RM$84.1 billion total tourism receipts in 2018 21 21 hotels in the pipeline for Malaysia till 2020 HOT NUMBERS delegates. The Sunway Pyramid Convention Centre and Sunway Resort Hotel & Spa recently underwent an RM$54 million facelift and has already secured 16 events for 2020.

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