KUALA LUMPUR, 27 SEPTEMBER 2019 – The national celebration of the World Tourism Day (WTD) 2019 was held at EQ Hotel Kuala Lumpur on 27 September 2019 (Friday). For the first time, the Ministry of Tourism, Arts and Culture Malaysia (MOTAC) has joined hands with the Department of Statistics Malaysia (DOSM) and PATA Malaysia Chapter (PMC) in organising the WTD 2019.
The World Tourism Day, initiated by the World Tourism Organization or UNWTO, is commemorated around the world each year on 27 September. Its purpose is to foster awareness among the global community on tourism industry’s social, cultural, politicaland economic value and the contribution of this sector in reaching the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). In line with UNWTO’s overarching focus on skills,education and jobs throughout 2019, the theme for this year’s World Tourism Day celebration is “Tourism and Jobs: A Better Future For All”. The theme was specifically selected to emphasise the importance of creating and ensuring equitable employment in the tourism industry to increase social inclusion, peace and security. This comes with the emergence of new technologies that has put pressure on socioeconomic growth, jobs and inequality. Thus, there is an essential need to examine the impact and to provide those who are impacted with the tools and skills to develop their full potential tobenefit from the new technological era.
This year’s WTD celebration, together with the launch of the of Domestic Tourism Survey (DTS) by States and Tourism Satellite Account (TSA) 2018, was officiated by the Deputy Minister of Tourism, Arts and Culture Malaysia, The Honourable Mr. Muhammad Bakhtiar Wan Chik,
A tourism symposium was also held in conjunction with WTD 2019. The symposium, adequately titled “Tourism and Jobs: A Better Future For All”, featured an impressive line-up of speakers including the President of the Malaysian Association of Hotel Owners (MAHO), YBhg. Tan Sri Dato’ Teo Chiang Hong; Group Chief Marketing Officer and Customer Experience Officer of Malaysia Airlines Berhad (MAS), Ms. Lau Yin May; President of Malaysian Association of Tour and Travel Agents (MATTA), YBhg. Datuk Tan Kok Liang and Senior Lecturer, School of Hospitality, Tourism and Events, Facultyof Social Sciences and Leisure Management, Taylor’s University, Dr. KandappanBalasubramanian. It was moderated by the Deputy Dean (Research and Industry Linkages), Facullty of Hotel and Tourism Management, Universiti Teknologi MARA and President, Tourism Educators Association of Malaysia, Associate Prof. Dr. Mohd. Hafiz Mohd. Hanafiah. The symposium explored ways to accommodate future tourism trends, methods to improve tourism practices and scrutinised ways to create more job opportunities in the industry.
The World Tourism Day (WTD) 2019 celebration in Malaysia this year brought together Ministries, agencies, industry players, non-governmental organisations, students from more than 11 universities and representatives from the media and created a platform to exchange ideas and experiences, enhance their knowledge of the industry and further expand the existing network for tourism industry’s growth and development.
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