Kuala Lumpur has jumped two places in world convention city rankings and three places in Asia Pacific ranking based on the number of international association meetings…
(Kuala Lumpur) – Kuala Lumpur has jumped two places in world convention city rankings and three places in Asia Pacific ranking based on the number of international association meetings held in 2011, the Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of Malaysia Convention & Exhibition Bureau (MyCEB), Zulkefli Hj. Sharif, said in Kuala Lumpur.
Kuala Lumpur staged 78 international association meetings, gaining two places on the ladder to finish 21st in the world and securing the top five position in Asia Pacific. Malaysia is ranked 29th overall – down one spot from the 28th world position while retaining its position as one of the top 10 meeting destination in Asia Pacific.
Despite the slight decline in ranking, the number of international association meetings hosted in Malaysia grew from 119 to 126 in 2011. This increase testifies the interest and confidence from global associations for Malaysia as a major meetings destination. A good example is the success in hosting the 2011 Institute of Internal Auditors International Conference in Kuala Lumpur. Held for the first time in Asia and touted as the world’s largest gathering of internal auditors, the globally-prestigious 2011 IIA International Conference attracted more than 2,200 delegates from 93 countries worldwide. This is the largest number of participants on record ever outside the USA.
“Malaysia’s increase in total meetings is the result of growing strength, cooperation and commitment between the Ministry of Tourism, MyCEB and the various industry partners to bid for, secure and deliver successful international meetings for the country. We are also very proud to announce that other than Kuala Lumpur, other Malaysian cities such as Penang, Kota Kinabalu and Melaka were also ranked this year, reflecting a growth in Malaysia’s association meetings business amidst a competitive and challenging market”, Zulkefli said. Penang and Melaka are respectively ranked 32 and 68 in Asia Pacific while Kota Kinabalu’s natural assets helped the city to secure the 38th rank.
In 2011, MyCEB supported 29 convention bids and 20 corporate incentive groups representing 35,750 delegates and an economic value of RM382 million (USD123 million). It also assisted 130 meetings and conventions, 6 exhibitions and 62 corporate incentive groups, which contributed an estimated economic impact of RM1 billion (USD344 million) to Malaysia.
The data on international meetings held in 2011 was released by the International Congress & Convention Association (ICCA), based in Amsterdam.
|
|
2010 |
2011 |
Change |
|
MALAYSIA |
|
|
|
|
World Ranking |
28 |
29 |
-1 |
|
Asia Pacific Ranking |
7 |
7 |
No change |
|
No. International Association Meetings |
119 |
126 |
+7 |
|
KUALA LUMPUR |
|
|
|
|
World Ranking |
23 |
21 |
+2 |
|
Asia Pacific Ranking |
8 |
5 |
+3 |
|
No. International Association Meetings |
79 |
78 |
-1 |
Luc Citrinot a French national is a freelance journalist and consultant in tourism and air transport with over 20 years experience. Based in Paris and Bangkok, he works for various travel and air transport trade publications in Europe and Asia.
