Tourism Malaysia And MyCEB Strengthen Presence In Central Asia Through Strategic Business Events Engagements

 

ALMATY & TASHKENT — The Malaysia Convention & Exhibition Bureau (MyCEB), with the support of Tourism Malaysia Almaty and the Embassy of Malaysia in the Republic of Uzbekistan, successfully organised the Malaysia Business Events Seminars in Almaty, Kazakhstan on 2 June 2026 and in Tashkent, Uzbekistan on 4 June 2026, marking Malaysia’s inaugural business events engagements in both cities. The seminars brought together representatives from the tourism industry, corporate sector, event organisers and the meetings, incentives, conferences and exhibitions (MICE) industry from Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan. The engagements served as dedicated platforms to showcase Malaysia’s capabilities as a preferred destination for business events, conferences, exhibitions and incentive travel programmes. 

The opening and welcome remarks were delivered by Mr. Arhan Syafrisyah Shah Anuar, Counsellor of the Embassy of Malaysia to the Republic of Uzbekistan, on behalf of the Ambassador of Malaysia; Mr. Nor Shazly Azmi, Director of the Tourism Malaysia Almaty Office; and Mr. Edward Lim Chee Chong, Senior Manager of the Business Development Division at MyCEB. During both seminars, representatives from MyCEB and Tourism Malaysia highlighted Malaysia’s strengths as an international business events destination, including its well-developed infrastructure, modern hospitality sector, competitive pricing, efficient logistics and strong international air connectivity. Special emphasis was placed on Kuala Lumpur as one of Asia’s leading business events hubs, supported by a comprehensive ecosystem for meetings, conferences and exhibitions, as well as continued government support for the business events industry. 

Mr Nor Shazly Azmi, Director of Tourism Malaysia Almaty Office, said, “Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan continued to demonstrate encouraging growth as emerging markets for Malaysia. Improving air connectivity and expanding flight options between Central Asia and Malaysia made the destination increasingly accessible for both leisure and business travellers. These inaugural seminars in Almaty and Tashkent marked important milestones in strengthening tourism and business ties while showcasing Malaysia’s broader potential as a destination for corporate travel, incentive programmes and international events.” 

Meanwhile, Mr Edward Lim Chee Chong, Senior Manager of Business Development Division at MyCEB, said, “We saw significant potential for collaboration with Central Asian markets, particularly amid growing interest in Malaysia from the business tourism and corporate sectors across the region. Supported by modern infrastructure, strong international connectivity, government support and a diverse range of venues, Malaysia continued to offer highly competitive advantages for business events of all scales.” 

The seminar in Almaty also featured a tourism presentation by Ms Kamilla Chaldanbayeva, Marketing Officer of Tourism Malaysia Almaty, which showcased Malaysia’s tourism offerings for the Kazakhstan market, including leisure, family, luxury and business travel experiences. Participants were introduced to Malaysia’s offerings for conferences, corporate meetings and incentive programmes, alongside the growing potential of bleisure travel experiences that combine business and leisure tourism. The seminars also served as platforms for establishing new professional networks and exploring future collaboration opportunities between Malaysian and Central Asian tourism and business events industry players. 

The programmes highlighted the growing potential for cooperation between Malaysia and Central Asian countries in tourism, trade and business engagement, reflecting strengthening bilateral ties and increasing interest from both tourism and corporate sectors, in line with efforts under the Visit Malaysia 2026 (VM2026) campaign. In 2025, Malaysia welcomed more than 43,000 visitors from Kazakhstan, making it the largest source market for Malaysia in Central Asia, while more than 20,000 visitors from Uzbekistan travelled to Malaysia, reflecting growing interest in the destination and strengthening people-to-people ties between the countries. Malaysia continues to strengthen connectivity with Central Asia through an expanding network of direct and connecting flights between Kuala Lumpur and the region. Current and upcoming routes include AirAsia X services between Kuala Lumpur and Almaty, direct flights operated by Uzbekistan Airways and Batik Air Malaysia between Kuala Lumpur and Tashkent, as well as Turkmenistan Airlines services connecting Kuala Lumpur and Ashgabat.

-Tourism Malaysia.