The Minister of Culture, Tourism and Antiquities Attends the Launch Ceremony of Visit Malaysia Year 2026 in Malacca.

On 27 September 2025, the Malaysian city of Malacca hosted the official launch ceremony of Visit Malaysia Year 2026, held in conjunction with the World Tourism Day 2025 and the World Tourism Conference 2025, with wide international participation and the presence of prominent figures from around the world.

H.E. Dr. Ahmed Fakak Al-Badrani, Minister of Culture, Tourism and Antiquities, attended the ceremony, accompanied by the Chargé d’Affaires a.i. of the Embassy of the Republic of Iraq in Kuala Lumpur, Mr. Ahmed Ghanim AbdulJabbar.

The ceremony was attended by H.E. Anwar Ibrahim, Prime Minister of Malaysia; H.E. Abdu Rauf Yusof, Chief Minister of Malacca State; and H.E. Tiong King Sing, Minister of Tourism, Arts and Culture of Malaysia, along with a number of senior officials.

The event took place at the Encore Malacca Theatre, with the participation of more than 155 international figures, including members of the United Nations World Tourism Organization (UNWTO), as well as official delegations and key players in the global tourism sector.

Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim stated that the national campaign, launched under the slogan “Malaysia Truly Asia – A Surreal Experience”, aims to attract more than 35.6 million tourists, making it one of the largest tourism initiatives in the country’s history.

This event comes as part of Malaysia’s efforts to strengthen its position as a leading global tourism destination, through organizing the Visit Malaysia Travel Meet (VMTM) 2025, with the participation of more than 400 tourism entities from across Malaysian states, including travel agencies, hotels, and institutions specializing in cultural and heritage tourism.