JOHOR BHARU, 4 DECEMBER 2023 – Tourism Malaysia successfully coordinated the Indonesia-Malaysia-Thailand Growth Triangle (IMT-GT) and Brunei Darussalam-Indonesia-Malaysia-Philippines East ASEAN Growth Area (BIMP-EAGA) National Tourism Seminars 2023. The event, held from 4th to 6th December 2023, took place in Holiday Villa, Johor Bahru.

A total of 150 delegations participated in the seminar comprising ministries, departments, or agencies ministries under the state government, MOTAC, tourism agencies, private sector, and non-governmental organisation (NGO) tourism, as well as the participation from the regional cooperation headquarters IMT-GT (CIMT) Center and BIMP-EAGA Facilitation Center (BIMP-EAGA FC).

The seminar receives generous sponsorship from Majlis Bandaraya Johor Bharu (MBJB) and Majlis Perbandaran Pengerang (MPP), along with valuable assistance and cooperation from Lembaga Kemajuan Johor Tenggara, KEJORA as Johor has been chosen as the host destination for this program this year.

The seminar aimed to raise awareness among states, involved agencies, and state tourism industry stakeholders about sub-regional cooperation under IMT-GT and BIMP-EAGA. Additionally, it sought to identify tourism products or services with the potential for packaging and marketing in the IMT-GT and BIMP-EAGA markets, proposing these efforts as joint projects.

On the second day, participants embarked on a tour of tourism products earmarked for development and packaged as travel offerings in the Desaru and Tanjung Belungkor areas. This benchmark visit enabled participants to tailor tourism products and packages for promotion in the IMT-GT and BIMP-EAGA markets and Southeast Asia in general.

Complementing the seminar, a dinner celebrated the participants from every state in Malaysia. The event was graced by YBhg Dato' Roslan Tan Sri Abdul Rahman, Secretary-General, Ministry of Tourism, Arts, and Culture, and YB Tuan Raven Kumar Krishnasamy, Chairman of the Johor State Tourism, Environment, Heritage, and Culture Committee.

Dato’ Dr. Ammar Abd. Ghapar, Director General of Tourism Malaysia, said: "The IMT-GT and BIMP-EAGA 2023 National Tourism Seminar marks a significant first stride toward realising the goals of IMT-GT Vision 2036 and BIMP-EAGA Vision 2025.

“This initiative enables MOTAC to pinpoint tourism products and packages for promotion in the IMT-GT and BIMP-EAGA region, fostering cross-border tourism and enhancing the competitiveness of IMT-GT and BIMP-EAGA as a unified tourism destination linked by diverse tourism products.”

“The organisation of this seminar showcases Malaysian leadership and proactive efforts as we are gearing up for Visit Malaysia Year 2026 through strategic collaboration with industry players, government agencies and media," he added.

Malaysia is expecting 26.1 million arrivals in conjunction with Visit Malaysia 2026. As of September 2023, 14.5 million arrivals were recorded out of the targeted 16.1 million international tourists this year, with RM49.2 billion (USD 11.1 billion) in tourism receipts.

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