Visit Malaysia Year 2014 launched

Deputy Prime Minister of Malaysia, YAB Tan Sri Dato’ Haji Muhyiddin Mohd Yassin officiated the Visit Malaysia Year 2014 today, the fourth edition of Visit Malaysia Year campaign, themed “Celebrating

Deputy Prime Minister of Malaysia, YAB Tan Sri Dato’ Haji Muhyiddin Mohd Yassin officiated the Visit Malaysia Year 2014 today, the fourth edition of Visit Malaysia Year campaign, themed “Celebrating 1Malaysia Truly Asia.

“The Visit Malaysia Year 2014 campaign is poised not only to create happy memories and wonderful experiences but also to extend the bridge of friendship and promote better understanding of each other’s cultures and heritage.

We have concocted the right ingredients for a highly successful Visit Malaysia Year 2014, among others: the enabling of policy framework and commitment of the Government, strong public-private sector partnerships and the unwavering support of our rakyat (people),” YAB Tan Sri Dato’ Haji Muhyiddin said at the Grand Launch ceremony.

An interesting line-up of exciting programmes kicked off as early as 10.00 am at Dataran Merdeka and these included insects exhibitions, caricature life drawing, handicraft sales, batik drawing, ratten weaving, video games, 6D van simulation and food stall featuring signature dishes from 14 states in Malaysia as part of the grand celebration to welcome the world to Visit Malaysia Year 2014.

Also present at the event, the Minister of Tourism & Culture Malaysia, YB Dato’ Seri Mohamed Nazri Tan Sri Abdul Aziz, urged all Malaysians regardless of their ethnicity and backgrounds to come together and provide their support in ensuring the success of Visit Malaysia Year 2014 in line with the “We Are The Host” concept.

“Every Malaysian is duty-bound to ensure that their guests are treated with the utmost respect and courtesy while at the same time shown around and about Malaysia’s many wonderful attractions. Thus, Visit Malaysia Year 2014 will pull everyone together in a concerted effort to welcome the world. It is every Malaysian’s duty to play their role as a hospitable host,” he added.

The day-long grand celebration saw a turnout of more than 50,000 crowd. The crowd were feted to a myriad of activities which included street performances, video presentations of cultural and tourism products, 1Malaysia Mix Music and drums performances, impressive “Building Mapping” presentations on the Sultan Abdul Samad Building, an extravaganza of “Celebrating 1Malaysia Truly Asia” Performances and Fireworks Display.

Malaysia’s vocal powerhouse divas, Dato’ Siti Nurhaliza and Datuk Khadijah Ibrahim serenaded the audience with their spectacular performances. Other local artistes including Datuk Jamal Abdillah, Amy Search, Hafiz, Nash, Azlan & the Typewriter, Awie and Najwa Latif also captivated the crowd with their famous hits.

A youthful zest from the LimKokWing University students added momentum to the event as they performed the theme song of Visit Malaysia Year 2014.

Visit Malaysia Year 2014 aims to contribute to the realisation of the Government’s target of receiving 36 million tourist arrivals and RM168 billion in tourist receipts by 2020, as outlined in the Malaysia Tourism Transformation Plan (MTTP) 2020 which is part of the National Key Economic Areas (NKEA).

In conjunction with Visit Malaysia Year 2014, the Government is targeting a total of 28 million in tourist arrivals & RM76Bilion in tourist receipts. To achieve the target, more than 200 exciting events and festivals have been planned for the entire year to attract more tourists during Visit Malaysia Year 2014.

Dataran Merdeka was chosen as the venue for the Grand Launch of Visit Malaysia Year 2014 due to its historical significance and surroundings. Dataran Merdeka is also set against the backdrop Sultan Abdul Samad Building, the iconic landmark of Kuala Lumpur which will match perfectly with the colourful visual feast of the Grand Launch.

The Proboscis Monkey is selected as the official mascot for Visit Malaysia Year 2014. Other three successful Visit Malaysia Year campaigns were held in 1990, 1994 and 2007.

About the author

Avatar of Linda Hohnholz

Linda Hohnholz

Editor in chief for eTurboNews based in the eTN HQ.

Share to...