PENANG CENTRE OF MEDICAL TOURISM (P.MED) VIDEO LAUNCH & SIGNING OF PROTOCOL OF MEDICAL TOURISM COLLABORATION BETWEEN PT CITILINK INDONESIA AND P.MED
SPEECH BY THE CHIEF MINISTER OF PENANG YAB TUAN CHOW KON YEOW FOR THE PENANG CENTRE OF MEDICAL TOURISM (P.MED) VIDEO LAUNCH & SIGNING OF PROTOCOL OF MEDICAL TOURISM COLLABORATION BETWEEN PT CITILINK INDONESIA AND P.MED
2 January 2023
G Hotel Gurney
YB Yeoh Soon Hin
Penang State Executive Councillor for Tourism and the Creative Economy
Bapak Ichwan F. Argus
Chief Commercial & Cargo Officer, Citilink Airlines
(By the way, Happy Birthday to Pak Ichwan, who has flown here to celebrate his birthday with us)
H.E. Bapak Bambang Suharto
Consul General of the Republic of Indonesia
H.E. Khun Raschada Jiwalai
Consul General of the Royal Thai Consulate-General
Bapak Emir Bustamam
Vice President Sales and Distribution, Citilink
Mr. Ooi Chok Yan
Chief Executive Officer, Penang Global Tourism
Dr. Mary Ann Harris
Executive Director, Penang Centre of Medical Tourism (P.MED)
Chairmen and Presidents of Trade and Industry associations
P.MED members
Members of the Press
Ladies & Gentlemen
Good afternoon to all of you.
Penang was hit hard during the Covid-19 pandemic when it reached our shores back in 2020. We suffered greatly when Malaysia’s borders were closed, right up to March 2022. Hotels were shut, shopping malls shuttered, factories closed, hospitals barely operational and businesses halted.
But I am glad to say that today Penang has emerged even stronger and better than before. We have a resilience that enables us to weather every storm and become better and stronger.
According to the Malaysian Healthcare Travel Council (MHTC), from 2015 – 2019, the industry has grown at a cumulative average growth rate (CAGR) of 17 percent. In 2019, Penang received nearly 480,000 medical tourists, generating RM730 million in revenue. This amounted to nearly 50 percent of the total revenue for Malaysia from medical tourism.
Since our international borders reopened on 1 April 2022, and all other restrictions lifted from August 2022, travel has rebounded. We see full occupancy for hotels every long weekend and tourists flocking to our shores again.
While the numbers achieved in 2022 have yet to surpass that of the pre-pandemic levels, the resurgence of medical tourists to Penang has been very encouraging. We have attained nearly 50 percent of what we used to earn in 2019.
Ladies & Gentlemen,
This is very good for our economy. It is also something that we are very proud of, because it shows that Penang has survived as a tourism destination and we continue to attract visitors because we have so much to offer, especially as a food paradise.
To reinforce this image, we have prepared this video, to showcase all that Penang has to offer in terms of health care, food and tourist attractions.
Over the course of the pandemic, many medical tourists who used to seek treatment in Penang could not visit our hospitals. There was a pent-up demand for these patients who needed to see their trusted doctors who provided professional treatment and good outcomes.
Ladies & Gentlemen,
We are thankful that those days are now over, and medical treatment is available to all who seek it here in Penang.
We are happy that Citilink Airlines provides the connectivity that enables patients to visit our hospitals, especially from Medan and Jakarta. And that is why we wish to work closely with Citilink to enhance those air links to Penang. We will ensure that our hospitals, hotels, travel agents, tour guides and all those in the travel industry work together to bring a seamless and hassle-free experience for medical tourists who are in Penang.
George Town is a UNESCO World Heritage Site, with many hotels and resorts that offer a wide variety of choices for medical tourists, making it easy for people to stay in the State while they receive treatment, as well as enjoy our delectable cuisine.
Our similarity in culture, language and the wide availability of halal meals means visitors can communicate, move about and enjoy the sights in relative comfort and familiarity.
Many people travel to Penang for health screening and medical treatment because of our reputation for excellence in areas such as cardiology, oncology, ophthalmology and orthopaedics, as well as for elective treatments such as dentistry, fertility and plastic surgery.
With the signing of this protocol of medical tourism collaboration with Citilink, the Penang Centre of Medical Tourism (P.MED) members can leverage on the reach and breadth of Citilink’s extensive coverage in Indonesia, to offer packages and ease of passage to Penang.
P.MED currently has 13 member hospitals with approximately 2,500 beds. I say approximately because like many other industries which are short of workers, we face a shortage of nurses in our healthcare. And the ability to operate wards or beds are dependent on having sufficient nurses. Without nurses, the wards cannot be opened.
We hope that Citilink can explore extending the coverage to include other major cities in Indonesia, such as Bandung, Jogjakarta and Surabaya, so more patients can have the opportunity and access to experience our excellent medical care.
We look forward to close collaboration with Citilink in the medical tourism sphere, and the video that we are about to view is testament to the importance of Indonesia as a market source for medical tourists.
We hope to build on this relationship to enhance ties between Penang and Indonesia.
Terima kasih and thank you.