- Malaysia Retains Its Position as the Top 10 Meetings Destination in Asia Pacific

                                             2010           2011   Change                
MALAYSIA                                 
World Ranking                         28                29        -1
 Asia Pacific Ranking                  7                  7    No change
No. International Association
Meetings                                119             126        +7 
KUALA LUMPUR
World Ranking                          23                21       +2  
Asia Pacific Ranking                    8                  5       +3
No. International Association
Meetings                                  79                78         -1
Source: International Congress and Convention Association (ICCA) Rankings 2011

Kuala Lumpur, 24 May 2012 - Kuala Lumpur has jumped two places in world convention city rankings and three places in Asia Pacific ranking based on the number of international association meetings held in 2011, the Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of Malaysia Convention & Exhibition Bureau (MyCEB), Zulkefli Hj. Sharif, said today.

Kuala Lumpur staged 78 international association meetings, gaining two places on the ladder to finish 21st in the world and securing the top five position in Asia Pacific. Malaysia is ranked 29th overall - down one spot from the 28th world position while retaining its position as one of the top 10 meeting destination in Asia Pacific.

Despite the slight decline in ranking, the number of international association meetings hosted in Malaysia grew from 119 to 126 in 2011. This increase is testament to the interest and confidence from global associations on Malaysia as a premiere meetings destination. A good example is the success in hosting the 2011 Institute of Internal Auditors International Conference in Kuala Lumpur. Held for the first time in Asia and touted as the world's largest gathering of internal auditors, the globally-prestigious 2011 IIA International Conference has attracted more than 2,200 internal auditors and governance practitioners from 93 countries worldwide. This is the largest number of participants that has ever been recorded outside the USA.

"Malaysia's promising increase in number of meetings is the sounding result of growing strength, collaboration and commitment between the Ministry of Tourism, MyCEB and the various industry partners to bid for, secure and deliver successful international meetings for the country. We are also very proud to announce that other than Kuala Lumpur, other Malaysian cities like Penang, Kota Kinabalu and Melaka have also been ranked this year reflecting a growth in Malaysia's association meetings business amidst a competitive and challenging market", Zulkefli said.

Penang and Melaka, both declared by UNESCO as world heritage site is ranked 32 and 68 in Asia Pacific city rankings respectively while Kota Kinabalu's natural wonders allure secured the capital city of Sabah, Malaysia number 38 in the listings.

In 2011, MyCEB supported 29 convention bids and 20 corporate incentive groups representing 35,750 delegates and an economic value of RM382 million (USD123 million). It also assisted 130 meetings and conventions, 6 exhibitions and 62 corporate incentive groups, which contributed an estimated economic impact of RM1 billion (USD344 million) to Malaysia.

The data on international meetings held in 2011 was released by the International Congress & Convention Association (ICCA), based in Amsterdam.
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For more information, please contact:
Ms Ho Yoke Ping
General Manager, Sales and Marketing
Malaysia Convention & Exhibition Bureau
Tel: +603 2034 2090 • Fax: +603 2034 2091 •Email: pingho@myceb.com.my

NOTE TO EDITORS
About the Malaysia Convention & Exhibition Bureau (MyCEB)

MyCEB was established in 2009 by Ministry of Tourism, Malaysia to further strengthen Malaysia's business tourism brand and position for the international business events market. A non-profit organisation, MyCEB serves as a central hub to assist meeting and event planners to bid for and stage international business events in Malaysia and act as a conduit for national product development. MyCEB's goal is to improve its rankings as an international meetings destination within ICCA and to grow business tourism arrivals to Malaysia.

As a measure to further develop the international events industry, MyCEB has launched a specialist unit known as the International Events Unit (IEU) which focuses on identifying and supporting international event bids including sports, art and culture and lifestyle events. The IEU's goal is to identify and assist homegrown events with the potential to attract international publicity and international attendances.

As reflected in the newly coined business events tagline, ‘Malaysia - Asia's Business Events Hub', it communicates Malaysia's proposition as a gateway to Asia for meetings. Owing to its stature as an Asian microcosm, Malaysia is increasingly becoming a first port of call for international meetings and associations wanting to engage with Asia - the world's largest and fastest growing economic region.
For more information, please visit www.myceb.com.my

About International Congress and Convention Association (ICCA)
Founded in 1963, the ICCA is one of the world's most prominent organizations in the world of international meetings. Based in Amsterdam, ICCA has over 900 members in around 85 countries. The ICCA rankings cover meetings organised by international associations which has a minimum of 50 attendees, take place on a regular basis and rotate between a minimum of three countries.
May 2012