Tag - Tourism

Kota Kinabalu: Minister of Special Tasks Datuk Teo Chee Kang said sea cargo transportation between Palawan, Philippines and Kudat, Sabah might be established first while waiting for the proposed roll-on roll-off (ro-ro) ferry service to take off. He said Bimp-Eaga Malaysia Business Council Chairman, Datuk Roselan Johar Mohamed, had pointed out that the preparation of the ramp in Kudat was a little slow. "But I assure that the State Economic Planning Unit (EPU) is pushing hard for funding from Kuala Lumpur," he said, adding he believed the funding would sooner or later come. Speaking at the welcoming dinner for a delegation from Palawan, Philippines led by Governor Jose Alvarez, he agreed with Roselan's suggestion for the setting up of the sea cargo transportation link. The proposed ro-ro ferry service between Palawan and Kudat was mooted in January last year when Teo led a business delegation from Sabah to Palawan. It was reciprocated by Alvarez's visit to Sabah, a few months later, shortly after taking over as the new Governor of Palawan. His visit to Sabah in conjunction with the Harvest Festival celebration this year was his second. Meanwhile, Teo welcomed Alvarez's vision to rebuild the "land bridge" connecting the Borneo Island with the Philippines archipelago through Palawan. In the older days, the land mass in the region was connected and Palawan used to be the land bridge. Now, Alvarez envisioned to rebuild the land bridge, though not in physical terms, but by providing the necessary infrastructure for people like in Pontianak, Kalimantan to travel on a motorcycle all the way to Manila in the Philippines. The Governor had said earlier in his speech that the land bridge would be his main priority. On another note, Teo suggested that a tourism product that promotes both the World Heritage site in Palawan and Sabah be packaged. He said in Palawan the World Heritage Site was Tubbataha Reef while in Sabah it is the Kinabalu National Park and packaging a product where people could visit the two places under one package. Later, Alvarez and Teo witnessed the memoranda of understanding signing for educational collaboration between Palawan State University represented by its President, Dr Peter S. Sespene, and Jesselton College represented by its President, Prof. Fred Y F Chin. The MoU signalled an increase of mutual understanding between the two neighbouring states, with emphasis on student and staff exchange programmes, workplace industry placement as well as education programme exchange. In the Palawan delegation were 14 out of the 20 mayors in the province of Palawan. Also on hand was City Hall Director-General Datuk Yeo Boon Hai. Source: Daily Express

KOTA KINABALU: The medical tourism industry in Sabah is starting to grow with the opening of the Swiss Wellness Centre located at the ground floor of Le Meridien Hotel here yesterday. The wellness centre is dedicated for non-invasive and holistic Swiss biological treatments and therapies. In his opening speech, Tourism, Culture and Environment Minister Datuk Seri Panglima Masidi Manjun pointed out that Sabah is perfectly positioned to capitalise on medical tourism initiatives due to its unique and prime tourism assets found predominantly within Sabah, coupled with its perfect geographical location and international airport. He noted that the global medical industry was worth an estimated USD40 to USD60 billion with the total number of healthcare travellers increasing to 594,000 from 392,000 in 2010. Masidi added that the Malaysia Investment Development Authority (MIDA) had reported that foreign investments in hotel and tourism projects within the state of Sabah had increased from RM11 million to RM70 million from January to August 2012. “Private sector initiatives such as the opening of the Swiss Wellness Centre augured well for the state as it would create a niche for Sabah in its foray into the medical tourism sector, and the transfer of knowledge to equip local medical practitioners with the Swiss biological therapies was a welcome initiative,” he said. The founder of Swiss Wellness International, Dato Seri Dr Mike Chan, said that Swiss biological medicine had been practised in Europe for over 100 years and was considered one of the most advanced forms of anti-aging programs in the world. He added that with the launch of the Swiss Wellness Centre in Le Meridien here, Sabahans, as well as medical tourists alike, will now be able to access world-class health scans, youth restoration and wellness therapies that promise holistic wellness, inside and out. “Chronic disease can be treated and reversed with the right protocols, and as such, founded on the clinical experience and treatment success in Switzerland, the Swiss Wellness Centre has developed the Swiss Revitalisation Program,” he said. He added, “In order to provide you with world-class treatment, the Swiss Wellness Centre has an international team of medical experts and professional  caregivers, who are well-versed and trained in the emerging field of Swiss Biological Medicine, to implement specialised modalities of detoxification, glandular stimulation and up-building therapies for private patients.” The Swiss Wellness Centre will offer individualised therapy protocols for treatment of various diseases, including male and female rejuvenation, management of congestive heart disease, liver disorders, kidney function impairment, diabetes and other metabolic and auto immune disorders. Following the official grand opening, a public health forum was held where members of the public were given the chance to learn from invited medical advisers, about various aspects of biological therapies and topics that are currently only known by top anti-aging doctors in the world. Also present at the event was medical advisor Dr Dina Tukhvatullina. Source: Borneo Post