The backdrop of 67th Anniversary of the National Day of Malaysia, August 30, 2024. | GDToday Photo
A reception was held on Friday night to celebrate the 67th Anniversary of the National Day of Malaysia and the 50th Anniversary of the establishment of Malaysia-China Diplomatic Relations by the Consulate General of Malaysia in Guangzhou.
In her welcome remarks, Madame Suraya Pauzi, Consul General of Malaysia in Guangzhou, traced the fifty years of goodwill between Malaysia and China and detailed the two countries' bilateral diplomacy, economic ties, and people-to-people exchanges, with a particular emphasis on Guangdong Province and Malaysia.
"Malaysia and China are further linked by a strong regional partnership in ASEAN, the RCEP, APEC, and the Belt and Road Initiative. We have also expressed an interest in being part of BRICS as Malaysia continues to have an outward-looking approach," Madame Suraya noted.
Additionally, as Malaysia will take over the ASEAN chairmanship next year, she voiced that the country takes this responsibility seriously, as ASEAN remains the cornerstone of Malaysia’s foreign policy.
The cake with decorations of the event celebration, August 30, 2024. | GDToday Photo
China has remained Malaysia's top trading partner for 15 straight years since 2009. Malaysia's total trade with China in 2023 amounted to 680 billion yuan, and total trade between Malaysia and Guangdong alone accounts for almost a quarter of that number.
To further enhance trade relations between Malaysia and Guangdong, according to Madame Suraya, the country continues to actively participate in key trade events, including the Canton Fair and The China International Small and Medium Enterprises Fair (CISMEF) in Guangzhou.
According to Madame Suraya, investments from China are largely in the manufacturing sector, including electronics, medical devices, EVs, and the chemical industry, as well as the services sector, such as data centers and regional services hubs.
Major Chinese companies such as Huawei in the GBA also count among Malaysia's major investors. In 2022, China was Malaysia's largest investor with 91 projects and an investment value of 100 billion yuan.
Correspondingly, Malaysia has also long invested in Guangdong. Taking Press Metal, a Malaysian-based aluminium company, as an example, Madame Suraya introduced that the company has been operating in Foshan since 2005 and currently plans to list on the Chinese stock exchange, making it the first Malaysian company and the first ASEAN company to do so on the Chinese mainland.
Performers play Malaysian music with their instruments, August 30, 2024. | GDToday Photo
Notably, the goodwill between Malaysia and southern China, in particular, is anchored on its people-to-people exchanges, as many Malaysians of Chinese descent can trace their roots back to Guangdong, Hainan, and Fujian.
Also, Malaysian students have returned to study in China in record numbers, and vice versa. Madame Suraya pointed out that the country is now looking to China for young people to pursue relevant training across a wide array of fields.
Malaysian official data unveiled that almost 2 million Chinese tourists have visited Malaysia in the first half of this year, while China remains a favorite holiday destination among Malaysians.
Madame Suraya further added that last year, you had the option to choose from 80 flights in a single week to get to Malaysia from Guangzhou. Thanks to the mutual visa removal and the following measures of robust tourism promotion and the efforts of the airline companies to add routes, the figure has now almost doubled to 150 flights a week.
Reporter: Clonde Zhang, Sophia Chen (intern)
Photo: Clonde Zhang, Sophia Chen (intern)
Editor: Steven Yuan, Will Wei, James
