The 3rd World Islamic Tourism Conference will be making its long-awaited return this October with approximately 300 delegates daily and an international and local lineup of 40 speakers and moderators.
Hosted by the Islamic Tourism Centre (ITC), the Ministry of Tourism, Arts and Culture’s lead agency for the development of Islamic Tourism in Malaysia, the convention will run from the 17th to 19th of October and highlight the socio-economic growth benefits of tapping into the Muslim tourist market.
Speaking on the potential of the Muslim tourist market, ITC Director-General, Dato’ Dr. Mohmed Razip Hasan said the one of things ITC’s has been observing and tracking is the growth of the Muslim tourist market.
“With people travelling again now, so are the Muslim tourists. It’s a key market to look into and one of the reasons is because they are geographically well distributed in Southeast Asia and Europe, not just the Middle East. You can say it is a global tourist market, protected from location-specific disruptions,” he explains.
“We are faced with new tourism preferences, advancements in technology, a changing workforce and working trends, climate issues, geopolitical challenges, and more. Industry players need the knowledge and a different way of thinking to thrive in this post-pandemic environment.”
This year’s theme will centre around “Islamic Tourism: Inspiring Balance, Transformations and Solutions,” selected to re-energise and motivate tourism industry players towards strategic action and tourism recovery by viewing the Muslim tourist market potential as a socio-economic driver. Through this theme, Dato’ Dr. Mohmed Razip hopes to influence a new way of thinking.
To add value to the WITC brand, this year will see an exhibition element to the conference. About 50 to 80 tourism businesses, products and services will be showcased, providing the perfect opportunity to connect and collaborate with tourism industry players.
“There are vast benefits in tourism, specifically when we deliver to the burgeoning Muslim tourist market. New businesses can evolve, products and services can expand, new jobs can be created, more people can benefit,” he adds.
“More importantly, Islamic Tourism strives to bring new perspectives which promote a healthy Human Development Index (HDI) consisting of excellent healthcare, education and decent standard of living, and a focus on ESG (Environment, Social and Governance), through best practices within the supply chains in the tourism, travel and hospitality segment.”
“The WITC conference will bring together some of the best minds from various industry backgrounds to weigh in on the matter.”
To learn more about the potential of the Muslim tourist market, register as a delegate at the 3rd World Islamic Tourism Conference 2022 at www.witc.gov.my.