SIBU: Federal Minister of Tourism, Arts and Culture has been applauded for being very proactive, breaking through the bureaucratic situation, simplifying various procedures to facilitate the development of tourism industry in the country.
In giving his accolade, president of Malaysia-China Chamber of Commerce (MCCC) Sarawak Branch, Wong Tin Kwong said since Datuk Seri Tiong King Sing took over the ministerial task, the latter has been running around non-stop and devoted himself to his country’s tourism industry.
“We know that flights are the key to developing tourism. With flights, we have the opportunity to attract more Chinese tourists. The minister has personally visited China several times and brought good news that Chinese flights will provide Malaysia-China flight services.
“He showed us what it means to act immediately, actively follow up, and dare to change. Within one year, he has strengthened business opportunities in the tourism and service industries between Malaysia and China.
“There are more and more air flights. This year, there has been an endless stream of charter flights, new routes, and extra flights from China to Malaysia. Of course, it’s not just China, other regions are also adding more flights to Malaysia,” he said during Tiong’s Chinese New Year (CNY) visit to his residence here today.
According to Wong, Tiong who previously served as the Prime Minister’s Special Envoy to China and the Malaysia-China Business Council, has made very outstanding contributions and has very good relations with all Chinese leaders, and this is very important and helpful to Malaysia.
He highlighted that since Malaysia and China implemented visa-free measures, domestic and foreign airlines have opened up many flights and charter services between China and Malaysia’s second- and third-tier cities.
He stated that the number of passengers visiting Malaysia during the Chinese New Year period increased by 53.9 per cent compared to the same period last year.
“The minister also told us earlier that with the implementation of the mutual visa exemption policy between Malaysia and China, our country aims to attract seven million Chinese tourists this year. This will not only help the tourism industry in Malaysia as a whole, but also bring countless business opportunities to Malaysia.
“When he improves the entire tourism service industry, and with this visa-free policy, it will add points to Malaysia’s overall business environment. This can also help more investors and business people to visit Malaysia and understand our humanistic quality and friendly environment.
“We are grateful to the Minister for his personal efforts in ensuring that various projects that help develop the tourism industry are implemented one by one. He also resolutely upheld justice and eliminated various obstacles that affect the development of tourism in Malaysia. And continue to work hard to reduce adverse entry incidents to ensure tourists have a pleasant experience in Malaysia.
“At the same time, we actively cooperate with relevant departments and call on airlines to review passenger entry documents in advance to jointly promote the smooth entry process. Through close cooperation with relevant departments, we ensure smooth entry for passengers, including providing translation services in Chinese, Arabic and other languages to avoid misunderstandings and disputes,” he said.
Moreover, Wong said since Tiong took office as the Minister of Tourism, Arts and Culture, he and the department team went to key cities in China four times to carry out Malaysian tourism promotion and roadshow tasks.
“Government-to-government, business-to-business, and other channels, including through Tourism Malaysia’s three offices in Beijing, Shanghai and Guangzhou, and with local travel agencies and airlines,” he said, adding, together with other industry partners they are discussing cooperation models and promoting the precise implementation of relevant plans in order to open up the “Rent and Supervisory Road” of Chinese tourists visiting Malaysia, so as to enhance the proportion and visibility of the Malaysian tourism brand in the Chinese market.
Through unremitting efforts, he stated MCCC successfully connected with China’s largest e-commerce platform, visited China’s six major online travel platforms, held talks with seven airlines besides actively recruited 14 leading Chinese outbound travel companies to deepen cooperation between Malaysia and China in the fields of tourism, art and culture, especially to make the country a popular destination among Chinese tourists.
In commemoration of the 50th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between Malaysia and China, Wong further stated that the exchanges and people-to-people bonds between the two places have created advantageous conditions, allowing bilateral exchanges in all aspects.
“MCCC Sarawak Branch is particularly looking forward to the Minister’s active promotion of the development of Sarawak. We know that whenever he goes to a place to discuss and communicate with others, he will always mention Sarawak as well as increasing flights to Sarawak so as to integrate with the world, especially China,” Wong added.
