SPEECH BY

YB DATO’ SERI MOHAMED NAZRI ABDUL AZIZ

MINISTER OF TOURISM AND CULTURE, MALAYSIA

KAZAKHSTAN INTERNATIONAL TRAVEL FAIR 2015

GALA RECEPTION EVENING

22 APRIL 2015, WEDNESDAY, 7:00PM

INTERCONTINENTAL HOTEL, ALMATY, KAZAKHSTAN

Members of the international travel trade fraternity,

Distinguished guests,

Members of the media,

Ladies and gentlemen.

1. Good evening. First of all, on behalf of the Ministry of Tourism and Culture Malaysia, I would like to congratulate ITE Group for successfully organising the Kazakhstan International Travel Fair (KITF) 2015.

2. To organise a travel fair of this magnitude for 15 years is certainly no easy feat. For making this event possible and for bringing all of you here, I believe the organiser deserves a big round of applause.

3. I would also like to thank the organiser for inviting Malaysia to be the Partner Country for this year’s KITF. This is an honour for us. We’re proud to be associated with such a prestigious travel fair and we’re pleased to lend our support to make it a success.

4. I understand that this year’s exhibitors are comprised of about 500 companies from over 37 countries. We have some of the biggest players from the international tourism trade fraternity here, making KITF a leading travel fair in Central Asia.

5. As such, KITF offers an excellent platform for all the exhibitors, including Malaysia, to meet, network, establish business opportunities, and reach out to the Central Asian market.

Ladies and gentlemen,

6. This is the reason Malaysia has been taking part in this travel fair for 14 years. We are excited to be back every year to update the international travel trade fraternity and media on our latest tourism products and developments, as well as to promote our newest holiday packages.

7. As we are celebrating the Malaysia Year of Festivals 2015 or MyFest, our participation in KITF as Partner Country this year is indeed timely. With the success of our Visit Malaysia Year 2014 campaign in generating a 6.7 and 10 percent growth for our arrivals and receipts respectively, we are embarking on the MyFest campaign to continue the momentum. It is a unique campaign that focuses on Malaysia’s diverse cultural celebrations and festivals. So, if you are into multiculture, this is the perfect time to visit Malaysia.

8. In conjunction with MyFest, we have increased our promotional efforts here in this region. Earlier this afternoon, I’ve launched the Tourism Malaysia office in Almaty, which will help keep the tourism fraternity in this region updated on our latest tourism products and attractions.

9. The office will also be a main contact point between our headquarters in Malaysia and the industry players and our friends from the media here, to establish greater cooperation and collaboration. With all these efforts, we look forward to welcoming more tourists from Central Asia to Malaysia.

10. Before I conclude, I hope you’ll like the cultural performance that you’ll be enjoying after this. We brought this troupe all the way from Malaysia, especially for you.

11. On that note, I would like to extend my best wishes to the organiser for a successful KITF this year, and I wish you all a very fruitful session as well.

Thank you.