SPEECH BY

Y.BHG. TAN SRI DATO’ SRI DR. NG YEN YEN

CHAIRMAN OF TOURISM MALAYSIA

MYFEST 2015 NETWORKING DINNER WITH

SOUTH AFRICA TRAVEL AGENTS

BO-KAAP KOMBUIS, CAPE TOWN, SOUTH AFRICA

16 APRIL 2015, FRIDAY, 7PM

SALUTATIONS:

Members of the South African travel trade fraternity,

Distinguished guests,

Ladies and gentlemen.

PLEASANTRIES / OPENING:

1. Good evening. It gives me great pleasure to bid all our guests a very warm welcome to this Networking Dinner, held in conjunction with the World Travel Market (WTM) Africa 2015.

2. I am delighted to be here tonight amongst the captains of the South African travel and tourism industry. Your presence this evening demonstrates your interest and support to our promotional efforts, and I thank all of you for that.

3. I appreciate the opportunity to personally update all of you on our latest tourism attractions and developments. I look forward to getting your feedback on how we can forge closer relationship and enhance business opportunities.

Ladies and gentlemen,

IMPORTANCE OF THE SOUTH AFRICAN MARKET:

4. Last year, close to 23,000 South African tourists visited Malaysia, which was an increase of 0.9 percent compared to the previous year.

5. It signified a good potential for this market. Hence, we at Tourism Malaysia will continue our promotional efforts here to attract more South Africans to our shores.

6. With competitive prices of holiday packages to Malaysia, high standards of service, modern facilities and infrastructure, we believe that Malaysia can offer South African travellers a truly memorable holiday.

Ladies and gentlemen,

MALAYSIA YEAR OF FESTIVALS 2015 & OTHER ATTRACTIONS:

7. This year, we are celebrating the Malaysia Year of Festivals (MyFest) 2015, which is a continuation of last year’s Visit Malaysia Year campaign. MyFest is designed to give tourists an amazing holiday experience, with an emphasis on the cultural aspect of the many different festivals celebrated by Malaysia’s multi-cultural society.

8. Themed “Endless Celebrations”, a total of 50 cultural events have been identified as the hallmark of our nation’s cultural celebrations and festivals. We look forward to welcoming you and the rest of the world to join in on the festivities this year.

9. For MyFest 2015, we aim to have 29.4 million tourist arrivals and RM89 billion in tourist receipts, leading up to our ultimate goal of 36 million tourists and RM168 billion in receipts by 2020.

10. With your continuous support, I believe we will be able to achieve our targets. I hope all of you will develop more exciting and creative tour packages that highlight our culture and promote it as a tourist attraction to the people of South Africa.

Ladies and gentlemen,

11. Malaysia has received various international recognitions and accolades in recent years, which speak volumes for its thriving tourism industry. We’ve been crowned as Asia’s Best Golf Destination, Best Family Destination, and the fourth Best Shopping City in the World. We were also in the Top 10 of Lonely Planet Best in Travel 2014, and recently, we have been listed as the world’s fourth top retirement haven for 2015.

12. Tourists can shop till they drop at some of our award-winning retail establishments such as Pavilion, Suria KLCC, Starhill Gallery and the Johor Premium Outlets, which is also Southeast Asia’s first premium outlet centre.

13. As winner of the Best Family Destination at Lonely Planet Travel Awards 2014, Malaysia offers many fun-filled theme parks for the whole family to enjoy. I suggest you to visit two of our major theme parks, Legoland and Puteri Harbour Family Theme Parks, to experience world class family bonding activities.

14. Other theme parks and children entertainment centres that should not be missed include Kidzania, i-City, Sunway Lagoon Theme Park, Lost World of Tambun, Genting Higlands Theme Park, and the much anticipated 20th Century Fox World outdoor theme park, scheduled to be opened in 2016.

Ladies and gentlemen,

CONCLUSION:

15. Before I conclude, once again, I would like to thank all of you for your support in our tourism promotional campaigns.

16. It is my sincere hope that the industry players in South Africa can work together with your Malaysian partners to make MyFest 2015 a great success. We also look forward to receiving your full support and assistance to ensure the success of our future promotions and marketing efforts here.

17. Till then, let me conclude by thanking all of you once again for having accepted our invitation to be here this evening, and I wish all of you a successful session at the WTM Africa this year.

Thank you.