KUCHING: The Ministry of Tourism, Arts and Culture (Motac) is looking into developing new tourism potentials in the country.
Minister Datuk Seri Tiong King Sing said his ministry will work with local tourism operators on developing new tourism opportunities related to tropical islands, diving activities, camping or glamping, campervans travel, and other more diverse tourism collaborations.
“Motac will also focus on upgrading the facilities and services of the aforementioned attractions,” he said in a Facebook post.
Earlier, Tiong said from April 2 to 11, he had led a delegation on a series of insightful and fruitful engagements with the government of China to promote deeper Malaysia-China bilateral cooperation in the tourism and cultural exchange.
“We will begin planning a series of large-scale cultural and tourism events, such as the Malaysia-China Cultural Festival, Folklore Festival and other events aimed at welcoming the 10th Anniversary of the Malaysia-China comprehensive strategic partnership and towards the 50th Anniversary of Diplomatic Relations between Malaysia and China in 2024 as well as Visit Malaysia Year 2025,” he said.
At the same time, he said, Malaysia and China will explore working on tourism and cultural cooperation to promote mutual understanding and people-to-people ties.
“This platform would serve to attract and welcome Chinese investment into the Malaysian tourism industry and expand economic opportunities in the tourism sector,” he said.
On the same note, he said Tourism Malaysia had signed Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with two travel agencies during this visit to bring 450,000 Chinese to visit Malaysia this year.
“Tourism Malaysia will leverage this momentum by engaging with other prospective Chinese tourism companies and organisations for more similar MoUs,” he said.
On Chongqing in China, he said, it is one of the five regions that the Chinese government aims to develop into an international consumer hub.
“The city has much to offer, especially its cultural tourism, and has become a popular travel destination among the youth in recent years.
“Therefore, Motac will actively explore various mechanisms to promote tourism cooperation between Malaysia and Chongqing, such as promoting the bilateral tourism industry players with local governments, offering incentives, and so on.
“The Chongqing government is also keen to explore the development of tourism, business, trade and investment in Malaysia to deepen cooperation between the two regions,” he said.
In order to provide a clear and comprehensive picture of Malaysia’s tourism landscape for Chinese tourism industry players, he had also formally invited them to organise a familiarisation tour under the guidance of Tourism Malaysia to visit all the tourist attractions in Malaysia.
“I trust that this tour would equip them with a better understanding of the unique selling points and potential tourism investment projects in the country,” he said.
