SPEECH BY

YBHG TAN SRI DATO’ SRI DR. NG YEN YEN

CHAIRMAN OF TOURISM MALAYSIA

MYFEST 2015 NETWORKING DINNER WITH

LAOS TRAVEL AGENTS

DHAVARA BOUTIQUE HOTEL, VIENTIANE, LAOS

4 APRIL 2015, SATURDAY, 6PM

SALUTATIONS:

Members of the Vientiane 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 or ‘Selamat Datang’ to this Networking Dinner.

2. I am also delighted to be present here tonight amongst all of you, the captains of the Vientiane travel and tourism industry, who have given us so much support in promoting Malaysia as a holiday destination here.

3. Your presence this evening speaks volumes of your interest and support to our promotional efforts and I sincerely thank you for that.

4. I would like to take this opportunity to personally give you an update of the latest developments of our tourism industry. I look forward to getting your feedback on how we can forge closer relationship and enhance business opportunities.

Ladies and gentlemen,

KEY MESSAGE 1: IMPORTANCE OF THE LAOTIAN MARKET:

5. The tourist arrivals from Laos to Malaysia is still relatively small. Last year, there was even a 25.4% decline in the arrivals from Laos with only 26,627 tourists.

6. Therefore, this year, we will work harder to forge more partnerships with tour agents from Laos to bring in more tourists from this country to Malaysia.

7. I am sure with your help in introducing more tour itineraries to Malaysia, Laotian will have a wide choice and more opportunities to enjoy the unique holiday experiences that Malaysia has to offer.

8. We believe that there is a huge potential to cater to the Laotian market. With competitive prices of holiday packages to Malaysia, high standards of service, modern facilities and infrastructure, as well as good flight connectivity between the two countries, we believe that Malaysia can offer Laotian travellers a truly memorable holiday. Therefore, we look forward to welcoming more Laotians to our shores.

9. As shopping is a favourite holiday past time, why don’t you start with promoting shopping in Malaysia as a package. For your information, Kuala Lumpur was listed as the 4th Best Shopping City in the World by CNN in 2012 and 2013, while Globe Shopper Index ranked it the second best in Asia Pacific. Laotian tourists can shop till they drop at some of our award-winning retail establishments such as Pavilion, Suria KLCC, Starhill Gallery and Johor Premium Outlets which is also Southeast Asia’s first premium outlet centre. As a shopping enthusiast myself, I guarantee that you will have a wonderful experience while shopping in Malaysia.

Ladies and gentlemen,

KEY MESSAGE 2: MALAYSIA YEAR OF FESTIVALS 2015 & OTHER ATTRACTIONS:

10. This year is 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.

11. 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.

12. We have several new events line up to celebrate MyFest 2015. Among them are the Orang Asli and International Aborigines Art Festival, Malaysia International Mask Festival, Royal Floria Putrajaya, and E-Street Festival Putrajaya.

13. 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.

14. 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 Laotians.

Ladies and gentlemen,

CONCLUSION:

15.Before I conclude, I would like to take this opportunity to extend to you our deepest gratitude for all your support in our tourism promotional campaigns.

16.It is my sincere hope that industry players in Vientiane can work together with your Malaysian partners to make MyFest 2015 a success. We look forward to receiving your full support and assistance to ensure the success of all our future promotions and marketing efforts. Till then, let me conclude by thanking all of you, once again, for having accepted our invitation to be here.

Thank you.