KUALA LUMPUR, 9 JULY 2019 – Tourism industry players will have access to a special RM5 million tourism fund this year to support their promotional efforts of Malaysia, the Minister of Tourism, Arts and Culture, YB Datuk Mohamaddin Ketapi announced today at Malaysia Tourism Centre (MATIC), Jalan Ampang, Kuala Lumpur.

The fund, called GAMELAN Malaysia, short for Galakan Melancong Malaysia, is a special allocation by the Ministry of Finance channeled through the Ministry of Tourism, Arts and Culture with Tourism Malaysia appointed as implementer.

It is aimed at assisting the tourism private sector in enhancing their promotion and marketing efforts geared towards increasing domestic and international tourist arrivals to Malaysia.

It is a matching grant that works on the basis of reimbursable financial assistance whereby eligible companies in the tourism industry may claim 50% of the actual cost of their promotional project or the maximum amount allowed for each project category.

A ceiling of RM200,000 is imposed on each grant recipient to ensure equitable distribution of the fund. Those who have accumulated claims of various projects up to this ceiling amount may no longer be considered for the matching grant.

Those who qualify to apply for the funding include tourism associations registered/recognized in Malaysia; travel agencies registered with the Ministry of Tourism, Arts and Culture; accommodation operators registered with the Royal Malaysian Customs Department; shopping associations registered/recognized in Malaysia; operators of Community-Based Tourism (CBT) registered/recognized in Malaysia; any clubs or associations promoting special interest products such as golfing, birding, diving, fishing, wedding, cycling, mountain climbing, paragliding, motorsports and gourmet; and companies providing servicing programmes or doing MICE promotions in Malaysia and overseas.

Projects that are eligible for the reimbursement fall into three main categories, namely participation in travel fairs/exhibitions; organizing of roadshow/sales missions; and servicing/MICE support. There is a maximum amount that can be reimbursed for each project or category.

For more information, please contact Tourism Malaysia’s Strategic Unit, Mr. Zakaria Mohd Nani / Ms. Harliza Ahmad at zakaria@tourism.gov.my / harliza@tourism.gov.my

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For more media releases, media info and media features on Malaysia’s tourism industry, kindly visit the Media Centre of Tourism Malaysia’s website at http://www.tourism.gov.my/

MALAYSIA TOURISM PROMOTION BOARD OR TOURISM MALAYSIA is an agency under the Ministry of Tourism, Arts & Culture Malaysia. It focuses on the specific task of promoting Malaysia as a preferred tourism destination. Since its inception, it has emerged as a major player in the international tourism scene. In 2018, Malaysia registered 25.8 million tourist arrivals and RM84.1 billion tourist receipts, placing it among the major tourism destinations of the world.

Press contact:

Media Unit:
Muadz Bin Samat, Assistant Director,
Corporate Communication Division
Tel: +603-88918755
Email: muadz@tourism.gov.my