KOTA KINABALU: The Belt and Road Initiative advocated by Chinese President Xi Jinping will create more business opportunities for Sabah, particularly in bringing in increasing numbers of Chinese tourists and investors to the State.
Sabah United Chinese Chambers of Commerce (SUCCC) president Tan Sri Andrew Liew Sui Fatt said that the tourism industry in Sabah was thriving.
As such, he encouraged SUCCC members and the business community to venture into hotel development to cater for the market demand.
Liew said this after leading his committee members to pay a courtesy call on the Head of State, Tun Juhar Mahiruddin at Istana Negeri here yesterday. The purpose of the courtesy call was to introduce the new SUCCC leadership line-up to Juhar.
Liew said Chief Minister Tan Sri Musa Haji Aman had recently met with the chairman of a tourism travel national cooperation in Beijing who promised to bring one million Chinese tourists to Sabah in the coming year.
Liew said the arrival of the one million tourists would certainly bring significant positive impact to the tourism and economy of the State.
He added that SUCCC would work closely with the State Government to attract more foreign investors, especially those from China, to Sabah.
On another note, Liew said, SUCCC and the United Sabah Chinese Communities Association of Kota Kinabalu (USCCAKK) led by Datuk Susan Wong, would be meeting with developer Arah Permai Sdn Bhd executive director, Datuk Francis Goh, next week to discuss the Wisma Tionghua Sabah project.
He hoped the joint venture project could be implemented as soon as possible.
Liew also said that the Wisma Tionghua Sabah development would benefit the tourism industry as the project included a hotel and shopping mall.
Also present were SUCCC deputy president, Datuk Ling Tiong Chai, vice presidents, Datuk Wong Kii Yii, and Guan Ka Hock @ Peter Gan.