WELCOME SPEECH BY THE HON. MR. LIM GUAN ENG CHIEF MINISTER OF PENANG IN CONJUNTION WITH THE 4TH WORLD TOURISM CONFERENCE 2016
Excellencies; and Ladies and Gentlemen.
Good Morning,
Penang welcomes all speakers and delegates to the prestigious 4th World Tourism Conference 2016 in the typical Malaysian greeting, “Selamat Datang ke Pulau Pinang!”.
We are honoured to be hosting this prestigious conference and would like to extend our utmost appreciation to Datuk Seri Nazri Aziz, Minister of Tourism and Culture as well as the World Tourism Organization (UNWTO) for choosing the UNESCO World Heritage City of George Town.
Penang is an industrialised state with 49% contribution to GDP from services sector(mainly tourism and shared services outsourcing) and 45% from manufacturing(mainly electronics, medical devices and LEDs). As one of the prime tourist destinations in Malaysia, Penang is well-served with good connectivity, transportation links and world-class hotels and lodgings that offers up to 20,000 rooms.
Hotel occupancy has gone up and our Penang International Airport is the second fastest growing airport in Malaysia after Kuala Lumpur. The services and tourism sector is growing in importance and we have developed world-class facilities such as restoration of heritage houses, theme parks, green parks, shopping malls and South-East Asia’s first underground convention center, Subterranean Penang International Convention & Exhibition(SPICE) Centre. We also have the oldest British school in South-East Asia, first built in 1816, celebrating its bicentennial this year.
Penang is known not only for our internationally renowned heritage enclave of George Town, but also for celebration of diversity and harmony with the famous George Town Festival, a month-long performances for art and culture. Further there are beautiful natural attractions, only a 15 minutes drive from the hills or the beaches, with world-class tourist sites such as Penang Hill, Gurney Drive tourist belts, the beach areas of Batu Ferringghi, complete with theme parks and an outstanding butterfly park in Entopia, art galleries and niche museums as well as our science tech buildings and digital libraries that teaches and amuse.
Of course, who can forget the wonderfully glorious food – widely acknowledged as the best street food in the world. For those who love durians, Penang also has the best durian in the world. And all this is available at very attractive prices with full value for money.
But best of all is the people of Penang, who welcomes visitors with warmth and generosity. After all Penang has been a cosmopolitan and international city for over 200 years, beginning when the British first took over in 1786.
Small wonder we have received international accolades all over from New York times, Lonely Planet and CNN, having the best food, best place to retire, best for discerning and budget travellers. Even Yahoo Travel listed us of the 8 top islands in the world you must explore before you die. Indeed since you all have been here, we can all die happy.
That is why this World Tourism Conference is important so that we can continue to share insights, ideas and best practices among some of the best minds in the industry. Penang is privileged to host such a renowned event and honoured to be given to showcase our most famous attraction – our diversity and ability of Malay, Chinese, Indian, Iban and Kadazan communities to live together peacefully.
Indeed we would like to explore how we can make the acceptance of diversity as a tourist magnet where tolerance, harmony and mutual respect for our differences is celebrated. My sincere hope that all of you will have the opportunity to experience the wonderful and diversified Malaysian culture and bring home wonderful memories of a clean, green, safe and healthy Penang to cherish. Finally my gratitude to the Minister Datuk Seri Nazri Aziz for making this conference possible. Thank you.
槟州首席部长林冠英于2016年10月17日出席2016年度第4届世界旅游会议所发表的演讲（摘要）
槟城是一个工业州，制造业（主要以电子、医疗设备及LED为主）占了槟州国内生产总值的45%，而服务业（主要以旅游及共享服务外包）则占了49%。作为国内主要的旅游胜地，槟城具有良好的连接性，交通连接及多达2万间房的国际级酒店及住宿。
槟州的酒店入住率已提高，而槟城国际机场是马来西亚续吉隆坡之后，成长率最高的机场。服务及旅游业日显重要，而我们也已发展了许多世界级的基设，如复修古迹建筑、主题乐园、绿色公园、购物广场及东南亚首个地下会展中心(sPICE)。我们也有一间东南亚历史最悠久、兴建于1816年、今年将庆祝建校200周年纪念的英校。
槟城不只因乔治市古迹区而闻名国际，它还有为期一个月、展现多元化及和谐的《乔治市节庆》艺术及文化节。我们也有很多只需15分钟车程、漂亮的山坡或海滩等自然风景区，这包括世界级的旅游胜地升旗山、新关仔角、峇都丁宜海滩（拥有许多主题公园、蝴蝶园），各式各样不同主题的博物馆，以及州政府打造的科学科技建筑及数码图书馆。
当然，来槟城就绝对不能错过槟城的美食– 举世闻名的街边小吃。那些喜欢榴莲的朋友，槟城榴莲绝对是世界第一等级的品种，这些都可以凭着物有所值的价位购得。
我们获得的国际荣誉，计有纽约时报、孤独星球、CNN等，我们获评级的包括最棒的食物、最佳的退休地以及最佳的预算旅游点。雅虎旅游也将槟城列入“人生必游的8个岛屿之一”。
世界旅游会议之所以重要，是因为它可以凝聚行业中的佼佼者，与大家分享各自的见解、概念、及最佳的实践方式等。槟城有幸成为主办地，是我们的荣幸。
我们的确有意探讨如何把我们的多元性成为吸引游客的主要磁铁。我们也要感谢旅游部长拿督斯里纳兹里让这项大会成功举行。谢谢！