KUALA LUMPUR: Tourism Malaysia has signed a memorandum of collaboration (MOC) with Expedia Group to promote local and international tourism in Malaysia, says Datuk Seri Nancy Shukri (pic).

       The Tourism, Arts and Culture Minister said the collaboration was timely and music to the ears of the tourism industry given Expedia’s reputation and credibility.

       “This certainly befits our aim of amplifying tourism demands at the international level especially now that we are in the post-pandemic stage,” she said in her speech during the signing ceremony on Thursday (May 26).

       Nancy also noted that previous collaborations with Expedia from August 2019 to February 2020 had successfully resulted in 156,573 tourists from the United Kingdom, United States and Japan travelling to Malaysia through the platform.

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       “This year, we are targeting three markets namely the UK, US and Australia between May and November. We are looking forward to seeing a surge in tourist arrivals following the reopening of our international borders and the easing of restrictions.

       “As such, I hope that this will draw attention and entice inbound tourists to Malaysia as their next holiday destination,” she said.

       Apart from efforts to promote the programme internationally, 11 local media outlets including Star Media Group, Radio Televisyen Malaysia (RTM), Sinar Harian and Astro alongside advertising platforms of KLIA TV and Aeon will also be working with Tourism Malaysia to produce a series of branded content and niche programmes to cater for the local market.

       “Tourism Malaysia will also be intensifying the campaign together with these platforms through various means, including electronics, print and digital, in covering various tourist destinations within Malaysia.

       “We would also like to express special thanks to the Housing and Local Government Ministry for providing us with their digital billboards across Malaysia,” she added.

       This collaboration will also support Malaysia’s efforts in achieving the targeted two million tourist arrivals with a revenue of RM8.6bil for the “Malaysia Truly Asia 2022” campaign.

       Also present at the signing were Tourism Malaysia director-general Datuk Zainuddin Abdul Wahab and Expedia Group Media Solutions Operations and Services vice president Doug Park.