MALAYSIA’S new tourism minister Abdul Kadir is flying to London next week to unveil the country’s worldwide publicity campaign at Earl’s Court.
Carrying the slogan ‘Malaysia Truly Asia,’ the main aim will be to raise awareness of the beach resorts in Malaysia, in particular Langkawi.
‘We want Langkawi to become a representative of Malaysia as Bali is of Indonesia and Phuket is to Thailand,” said a spokesman for the Malaysia Tourism Promotion Board in London.
“The campaign will focus on the attractions of Langkawi, which is a duty-free island.”
The tourism minister will be joined on the Malaysia stand by recently appointed director general of the MTPB, Abdullah Jonid, and new UK director Yazid Mohamed.
In addition to launching Malaysia’s new publicity campaign, the tourism minister is expected to reveal a dramatic recovery in the country’s arrival statistics.
In total, 160,000 Britons visited Malaysia in 1998, 1% fewer than in the previous year, but a fall in the value of the Malaysian ringgit has sparked a recovery.
MTPB spokesman said: “Since the turn of the year the ringgit has fallen 25% against the pound, which has led to bargain package prices. This has brought a rapid recovery in arrival figures.”
The spokesman added that Malaysian exhibitors will avoid price rises for the millennium as they do not want to jeopardise business from the UK.
“They are targeting the UK as it is their leading market in Europe and they are intent on maintaining bargain prices for this market,” he said.
The Malaysia stand will have 100 delegates this year, compared to 90 in 1998, including a record number of hoteliers and ground handlers.
Five of Malaysia’s 13 states will also be sending representatives to the show for the first time.
In addition to Sabah and Sarawak, which take their own stands, there will be representatives from the two main holiday islands of Langkawi and Penang, and from Selangor, Terengganu and Malacca on the Malaysia stand.