Nizran Noordin

BY KHIRTINI K KUMARAN

This year , Malaysia is targeting to receive 16.1 million international tourist arrivals with RM49.2 billion in tourism receipts , with five million arrivals targeted to be from the Chinese market .

Tourism Malaysia continues to intensify promotions alongside travel agents and airlines through its overseas offices in Beijing , Shanghai and Guangzhou .

With the resumption and announcement of new international routes from Malaysia-based airlines and Chinabased airlines such as China Southern Airlines , Air China , Spring Airlines and Xiamen Air , there are currently 232 weekly flights between China and Malaysia .

Islamic Tourism Centre ( ITC ) Director- General Nizran Noordin said : “ I strongly believe in the vision of the Minister and Deputy Minister of Tourism , Arts and Culture , who are looking forward , in this post-Covid-19 era , to tap into the Chinese tourism market .

“ In line with that vision , ITC is looking into attracting the Muslim population in China which has one of the largest Muslim

populations in the world . In 2020 , about 30 million Muslims resided in the great land .

“ Chinese tourists have always been enthusiastic world travellers . They are also known as a high-spending market . Having the Chinese Muslim market travelling to Malaysia means that the tourists will be able to enjoy and spend their money on the products and services that come with our Muslim-friendly ecosystem .”

TOURISM POTENTIAL FOR MUSLIM-FRIENDLY ECOSYSTEM IN MALAYSIA

In 2019 , Malaysia warmly welcomed 56,057 Chinese Muslim tourists , contributing RM275.9 million in tourism receipts .

“ Based on our engagements with the Malaysia Inbound Chinese Association ( MICA ) and its partners , we observe that Chinese Muslim tourists enjoy visiting Malaysia and stay for more extended periods of seven to 10 days .

“ The landscape in China is different from what we offer in Malaysia , and they enjoy our islands and beaches , soft adventure and nature activities , city experiences , and shopping for cosmetics , beauty products , fashion / clothes and food .

“ And after meeting up with the industry stakeholders and players in Lanzhou , Xi ’ an and Shanghai , it can be concluded that the Chinese Muslim market would be interested in Malaysia and all that it has to offer , from halal food to nature and

man-made attractions and access to halal and Muslim-friendly facilities .”

He also noted that Chinese Muslims , in some ways , are even more particular / fastidious about their faith-based needs . Hence , all the more reason for Malaysia ’ s tourism industry players to understand this market and their needs .

ENGAGING CHINESE TOURISTS

ITC is taking significant steps to engage with Chinese tourists and increase their awareness of Malaysia ’ s unique Islamic heritage and experiences , ultimately boosting the number of Chinese tourist arrivals to Malaysia , said Nizran .

“ We are working closely with tourism industry players and local tourism associations , including MICA , to introduce the Muslim-friendly recognition programme , known as the Muslim-Friendly Tourism and Hospitality Assurance and Recognition ( MFAR ). This programme aims to provide Muslim tourists with Muslim-friendly hospitality and services in Malaysia .”

ITC is also partnering with travel agents and Malaysian sellers in China to further promote Muslim-friendly tourism through training , seminars , awareness programmes , and B2B engagement activities .

“ We are also looking into identifying Malaysia ’ s distinctive Islamic heritage and experiences that tourism partners can explore .”

Nizran also acknowledged MICA ’ s efforts