Visit Malaysia 2020 logo to be replaced on marketing collaterals

The Malaysia Convention & Exhibition Bureau (MyCEB) has informed all industry partners of the Visit Malaysia 2020 (VM 2020) campaign to gradually remove the VM2020 logo present in all marketing collaterals and promotional items. The logos will be replaced with the Malaysia Truly Asia logo.

This follows closely after the Ministry of Tourism, Arts and Culture (MOTAC) cancelled VM2020 last week. Tourism, Arts and Culture Minister Nancy Shukri said the cancellation was "effective immediately" and comes as local and international tourism sectors are impacted by the virus outbreak.

Separately, MyCEB also encouraged all industry partners to take advantage of the stimulus package offered by the Malaysian government for the tourism industry. The stimulus package sees the Malaysian government setting aside RM500 million to provide all Malaysians with digital vouchers of up to RM100 per person for domestic flights, rails and hotel accommodations. Additional matching grants for tourism promotion will be provided, the government said previously.

Abdul Khani, CEO of MyCEB, said it urges all industry players to adhere to MOTAC and the Ministry of Health guidelines and procedures in curbing the virus from further spreading. "We shall remain strong and begin to relook at our next strategy in making Malaysia a preferred business event destination as soon as the industry rebound," he added.

The recent two-week Movement Control Order imposed by the Malaysian government has seen all businesses come to a halt and travel restrictions being implemented. There was also a freeze on all over-the-counter and online services at the MOTAC tourism licencing division. These include licencing of tour operators, tour guides, tourism training institutes and registration of tourism accommodation premises, as well as foot massage centres.

Earlier in February, Tourism Malaysia shifted its focus to domestic travel and other markets (including European countries, Australia, Middle East, Central Asia, Russia and East Asia) after it witnessed a significant drop in the number of tourists coming from the China. Before that, Tourism Malaysia had picked The IO Movement and M&C Saatchi to handle global creative duties and digital marketing duties in Europe respectively. 

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