SIBU: In line with the MADANI government’s emphasis on elevating cultural tourism to a national priority, the Ministry of Tourism, Arts, and Culture (MOTAC) is preparing to launch several cultural tourism initiatives and events in 2025.
According to Minister Datuk Seri Tiong King Sing, the cultural tourism sector has the potential to boost economic growth and raise the standard of living of inhabitants by drawing more domestic and foreign tourists.
At Friday night’s MOTAC Bersama Komuniti @ Sibu 2024 event, which took place at the Azman Hashim Community Sports Complex in Sibu Jaya, he declared, “Tourism Malaysia and its agencies have been entrusted with spearheading these programmes and activities.”
He added that in the first nine months of 2024, domestic tourism had 193.3 million tourists, up 21.8 per cent from 158.7 million in 2023.
Domestic travel expenditures increased by 27.2% from 2023’s RM61.2 billion to RM77.8 billion during the same period.
“From January to November 2024, 32.2 million foreign visitors arrived, a 31.8 per cent increase from 25.9 million in 2023,” he stated.
Tiong stated that MOTAC would work with retail malls to introduce a statewide Midnight Sales campaign to further stimulate the tourism industry.
At malls and other locations, “special food promotions will also be introduced to showcase Malaysia’s local delicacies,” he continued.
Tiong urged all stakeholders to work together to ensure the success of the ministry’s Visit Malaysia Year 2026 campaign, which aims to strengthen the nation’s standing as a top international travel destination.
In the meanwhile, he asked the Sarawak Tourism Board to create more tourism goods in order to draw tourists from ASEAN, Asia, the Middle East, Europe, and beyond. He also stated that MOTAC would keep promoting Sarawak as a major travel destination.
