January-February . 2024

MESSAGE FROM

Since I came on board as Director-General on July 10 , 2023 , one of the first programmes rolled out by ITC was the implementation of the Islamic Tourism Month to showcase the diverse Muslim-friendly tourism products and services . Close to 130 local businesses including hotels , restaurants , and our tourism mosque partners took part with special deals and activities for the public , enhanced by digital promotions using a QR code platform . Together with a TikTok Challenge competition targeted at youths , the month saw a total revenue of RM2 million alongside visibility of our Muslim-Friendly Tourism and Hospitality ( MFTH ) ecosystem . 2023 was also the year that Malaysia was announced as a regional umrah hub , with plans underway to make this a reality . Advancing this intention , ITC worked with Tourism Malaysia and industry partners , particularly the Malaysia Inbound Chinese Association ( MICA ) to penetrate the China Muslim market with new Muslim-friendly travel packages highlighting Malaysia ’ s diverse culture , heritage , and architecture offerings . These were successfully launched during the China International Travel Mart in Kunming , followed by a familiarisation trip for 35 Imams from 14 provinces in China , a strategy to reach out to the 30 million addressable market of Muslims in China .

The Muslim-Friendly Tourism and Hospitality Assurance and Recognition ( MFAR ) programme was also expanded to benefit more business sectors , and engagements with industry players were a key initiative to harmonise the guidelines for them . Similarly , training for Muslim-Friendly Tourist Guides ( MFTG ) was stepped up and we currently have a group of 183 MFTGs throughout Malaysia as of December 2023 .

I extend my heartfelt gratitude to the Ministry of Tourism , Arts , and Culture ( MOTAC ) for their unwavering support , as well as to our invaluable partners in the industry , esteemed members of academia , and the diligent media for their collaborative efforts . The commitment and dedication of our esteemed staff at ITC have also played a pivotal role in achieving the milestones we celebrate today .

Looking forward , I wish to emphasise the importance of collaborations to revitalise and sustain the tourism economy . Our focus for 2024 continues to centre around awareness and industry buy-in for our standards and certification programmes as a means to fortify Malaysia ’ s standing as a leading Muslimfriendly destination . In line with Minister of Tourism , Arts and Cuture , YB Dato ’ Seri Tiong King Sing ’ s call for states to identify key tourism products and events , ITC is ready to assist all state governments and their respective tourism industry players to leverage the MFTH potential and opportunities as we move towards Visit Malaysia Year 2026 preparations .

May Allah bless our endeavours and guide us towards continued prosperity .

Wassalamualaikum warahmatullahi wabarakatuh . Nizran Noordin

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