MALAYSIA remains one of the largest sources of Taiwan’s inbound tourists, as well as foreign students, said Taipei Economic and Cultural Office in Malaysia representative Phoebe Yeh.
“Our close and strong bilateral relations cannot be fully exemplified without mentioning the people to people exchanges, especially on education and tourism,“ she said at the 113th National Day Reception of the Republic of China in Kuala Lumpur yesterday.
In terms of tourism, 460,000 Malaysians have visited Taiwan in 2023, ranking Malaysia as number one among Asean countries. According to travel platform Agoda, Malaysians pick the city of Taipei as the top international tourist destination for 2024.
“We are vigorously promoting Salam Taiwan in the hope that more Muslim friends would experience the beauty and hospitality of Taiwan, which ranks third Muslim-friendly destination among non-Muslim nations,“ Yeh added.
For the past seven decades, over 100,000 Malaysians have pursued higher education in Taiwan, with more than 10,000 students studying in the island country now.
Taiwan continues to move ahead in ICT industries, renewable energy, smart agriculture, smart health and biotechnology.
On economic performance, semiconductor and artificial intelligence are two main driving forces for Taiwan. The booming of semiconductor and E&E (electrical and electronics) industries and close links of the supply chains play an essential role in the economic and trade relations.
Taiwan is promoting people-centered New Southbound Policy 2.0, mostly in Asean to increase digital connectivity, including management techniques, innovative services and system integration solutions.
Bilateral trade amounted to US$27 billion (RM114 billion) in 2023, making Taiwan Malaysia’s fifth largest trade partner. For years, Taiwan has been the eighth largest source of foreign direct investment for Malaysia. Taiwan’s investment has created the third largest number of employment with 400,000 jobs, next to Singapore and Japan.
Around 1,000 guests attended the National Day Reception, which saw the student choir performance of Chinese Taipei School Kuala Lumpur and the nose flute show by acclaimed Taiwanese aboriginal musician Tu Chen Yung.
