ASEAN Tourism Investment Seminar organized by ASEAN-Japan Centre (AJC) was held in Osaka, Japan on 23 October 2019. Mr. YB Datuk Mohamaddin bin Ketapi, Minister of Tourism, Arts and Culture of Malaysia, Mr. Masataka Fujita, Secretary-General of AJC, Mr. Lee Hyuk, Secretary-General of ASEAN-Korea Centre and nearly 200 delegates from the ASEAN National Tourism Organizations (NTOs) and local business investment sector were present. On behalf of ASEAN-China Centre (ACC), Ms. Kong Roatlomang, Director of Education, Culture and Tourism Division (ECTD) attended the event. 

 

Secretary-General Masataka Fujita delivered the opening remarks, appreciating the participation and support by all the partners including the tourism authorities of ASEAN Member States, Japanese investment entities as well as ACC and AJC. As a driving force for the economic and social development in the world, tourism is becoming increasingly important for the regional countries including Japan and the ASEAN Member States. He stated that AJC has been continuously making contributions to the people-to-people exchanges and economic cooperation between ASEAN and Japan since its establishment in 1981. Japan is one major source of inbound tourists and tourism investments for the ASEAN countries, so that this Seminar could be a valuable platform for tourism investment and economic cooperation. He wished all the participants fruitful results from this Seminar. 

Minister Datuk Mohamaddin bin Ketapi spoke highly of this Seminar during his welcoming remarks. He mentioned that there is a huge population in Asia, among which the size of middle class is growing quickly. According to the World Tourism Organization (UNWTO), the international tourist arrivals in 2018 reached 1.4 billion, increasing nearly 6% year-on-year; exports generated by international tourism reached USD 1.7 trillion in 2018, increasing 4% year-on-year in real terms and reflecting solid demand for international travel in a generally robust economic environment. Japan has made great contributions to the world tourism sector. The ASEAN countries are trying to improve their tourism investment environments so as to receive more international tourists, and Malaysia may be taken as an example. He believed this Seminar organized by AJC could help explore tourism investment opportunities in the ASEAN countries. 

 

The representatives of Kansai Economic Federation and Super Hotel Co., Ltd. of Japan shared the information of their investment strategy and business practice in Japan, Myanmar and Viet Nam. The delegates of the ASEAN NTOs presented the tourism investment opportunities and relevant policies in their respective countries. Individual business meetings were also held following the 3-hour Seminar. During these activities, the delegates of ACC exchanged views with their counterparts on tourism investment cooperation between ASEAN and China.

On the next day, the delegates of AJC and ACC were invited to attend the Opening Ceremony of Tourism Expo Japan 2019 and visited the exhibition halls. As one of the global-scale platforms for business-to-business and business-to-consumer travel promotion, this Expo was jointly organized by Japan Travel and Tourism Association (JTTA), Japan Association of Travel Agents (JATA) and Japan National Tourism Organization (JNTO).