9th March 2021 – Ministry of
Tourism, Arts
and Culture Malaysia through its agency Tourism Malaysia is
participating in the world’s largest tourism trade fair, Internationale
Tourismus-Borse Berlin, also known as ITB Berlin. This year, ITB Berlin takes
participants on a completely virtual journey throughout the three-day event
called ITB Berlin NOW 2021 that is taking place today until 12 March 2021.
Participating for the 48th time, Malaysia is
joined by 30 Malaysian organisations, consisting
of 10 tour operators, 10 hotels and resorts, seven (7) state tourism boards,
and three (3) tourism associations. Under one venue at The Grand Hyatt Kuala
Lumpur initiated by Tourism Malaysia, delegates are provided with a platform
and facilities to establish global networking and conduct business transactions
with buyers online.
Taking full advantage of the virtual experience, Malaysia will
also have a “virtual café” for the first time called Malaysia Truly Asia Café Corner that
will highlight Malaysia’s niche products such as specialised scuba diving for
the disabled, birdwatching, and medical tourism.
The Minister of Tourism, Arts and Culture, Dato’ Sri Hajah Nancy
Shukri officiates the opening ceremony today through a live telecast from
Kuching, Sarawak. Highlighting Malaysia’s islands and beaches, national parks,
and UNESCO heritage cities, this year’s theme focuses on ecotourism and
sustainability.
“The shifting trend in tourists’ preferences after experiencing
the pandemic has given a whole new perspective to the tourism industry in the
new norm. On top of that, climate change and environmental protection are also
increasingly becoming important issues in the tourism industry worldwide,” says
Dato’ Sri Hajah Nancy Shukri during the opening ceremony.
“Taking all these factors into account, the Malaysian tourism
industry is now focusing on maximising our existing resources through
ecotourism, rural and experiential tourism, as well as enhancing our niche
products. We are also looking into expanding more personalised travel packages
that cater to smaller groups of tourists to gradually revitalise the tourism
industry once our borders are reopened,” she added.
According to the World Tourism Organisation (UNWTO), the tourism
sector worldwide experienced a 74% decline in international arrivals in 2020,
while Pacific Asia witnessed an alarming 84% decrease in numbers of
international tourists in 2020. These data reflect Malaysia’s tourism
performance for 2020 where a staggering decline of 83.4% in
international tourist arrivals were recorded, as highlighted by Dato’ Sri Hajah
Nancy Shukri.
With Malaysia’s recent roll-out on the Covid-19 vaccination
programme and the updated standard operating procedures (SOPs) for the tourism
sector, the country is now gearing up in welcoming tourists once again. The
recently announced SOPs has also allowed the resumption of Meetings,
Incentives, Conferences, and Exhibitions (MICE) tourism, with a capacity limit
of 50% of the premise.
Through this event, Tourism Malaysia is looking forward to
discussing possible collaborations and partnerships by leveraging the
business-to-business (B2B) spectrum. Markets proposed for these joint
collaborations are Turkey, Germany, France, Spain, Portugal, Italy, Moscow,
Ukraine, Austria, Sweden, Czech Republic, and the Balkan Region.
Apart from its aim to promote and increase Malaysia’s visibility
in the European market, Tourism Malaysia also wishes to enhance connectivity
from major long-haul destinations to Malaysia and also to take advantage of
international events such as ITB Berlin to draw visitors to visit Malaysia.
No comments:
Post a Comment
Note: only a member of this blog may post a comment.