MELAKA, The state government continues its efforts to promote Visit Melaka Year 2024 (TMM2024) internationally, including making a visit to the Guangxi Radio and Television Station in China today.
Chief Minister Datuk Seri Ab Rauf Yusoh, who is leading the Melaka state government delegation to China, said the visit was important in discussing collaboration, particularly for the live broadcast of the launch of the TMM2024 campaign on the night of Dec 31.
"The arrival of tourists from China, especially from the Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region, is crucial in helping to achieve the target number of tourist arrivals in Melaka," he said in a posting on his official Facebook today.
Ab Rauf and the Melaka delegation, including the state's Tourism, Heritage, Arts, and Culture Committee chairman Datuk Abdul Razak Abdul Rahman, and the Investment and China Affairs Advisor to the Chief Minister, Datuk Lim Ban Hong, will spend five days in the Guangxi and Guangdong regions in southern China. The visit started yesterday.
He also expressed optimism that with the visa exemption since Dec 1, coupled with aggressive promotions for TMM2024 with a target of 15 to 18 million tourists visiting Melaka next year, especially through an increase in the number of tourists from China, can be achieved.
He said that from January to October this year, Melaka recorded a total of 5.3 million tourists, including 1.7 million overnight visitors and 3.5 million daily visitors and that out of this total, 4.5 million or 84.4 per cent were domestic tourists, while 862,293 or 15.5 per cent international tourists, including 145,700 from China.
In addition, he stated that through this visit under the State Government of Melaka Investment and Tourism Promotion Mission, the state government is exploring new investment opportunities in various sectors, including tourism, with the effort aiming to attract investments while strengthening the tourism sector, which is the main mission of the Melaka delegation to the region.
Ab Rauf said that the visit is a follow-up to the working visit by the Governor of the Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region, Miao Qing Wang, to Melaka on October 19 and that he personally invited the Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region to enhance cooperation in cultural exchange, thereby further enhancing economic growth between the two cities.
"The Melaka State Government is optimistic about targeting more new investment opportunities from investor groups in the region and wants to introduce Melaka as a hub in the electric vehicle and energy-efficient automotive industry.
"At the same time, I also want to continue closer cooperation in the tourism sector, further intensifying the Visit Melaka Year 2024 (TMM2024) promotion campaign to tourists from the People's Republic of China," he said.
Source: BERNAMA News Agency