JOHOR BARU: The Asean Tourism Forum (ATF) will be hosted by Johor in 2025, says Mentri Besar Datuk Onn Hafiz Ghazi.

       He thanked the Tourism, Arts and Culture Ministry for choosing Forest City as the venue for the event, set for Jan 19 until Jan 25 next year.

       "During minister Datuk Tiong King Sing’s visit to Johor, we discussed the prestigious event, which will involve all tourism ministers in the Asean region, with the addition of China," he said in a Facebook post on Sunday (March 31).

       Established in 1981, ATF is a cooperative regional effort to promote Asean as one tourism destination.

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       Each year, the hosting of ATF was rotated among the 10 Asean member countries; this year’s event was held in Vientiane, Laos from Jan 22 to Jan 27.

       Onn Hafiz added that he and Tiong’s entourage also went through the state’s plans and direction for the upcoming Visit Johor Year 2026 where 12 million tourism arrivals were targeted.

       A total of RM67.6mil had also been set aside under the state budget for 2024 to improve Johor’s tourism infrastructure, he said.

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       He added that other plans and efforts include organising more international-level tourism events and hoped that the cooperation between Johor and the federal tourism agencies could place the state among the top tourism destinations in Malaysia.

       "This is an important initiative to ensure Johor’s readiness to receive tourists and visitors to make Visit Johor Year 2026 a success," he said.