Malaysia wins double header

LOS ANGELES, California – Malaysia’s latest international congress win is for the Federation of International Surveyors (FIG) General Assembly International Congress 2014.

LOS ANGELES, California – Malaysia’s latest international congress win is for the Federation of International Surveyors (FIG) General Assembly International Congress 2014. Malaysia won the vote 35 to 31 over Istanbul, Turkey, at the XXIV FIG Congress, which was held in Sydney, Australia, from April 11-16, 2010.

Malaysia’s Association of Authorized Land Surveyors (Persatuan Juruukur Tanah Bertauliah Malaysia – PEJUTA) and the Department of Surveying and Mapping, Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment Malaysia, played a pivotal role in Malaysia’s successful bid. “Winning this prestigious international congress for Malaysia is not only a major milestone but will help add to the country’s effort and credibility to be a new hub for surveying knowledge and practices,” said the president of the Malaysian member association in FIG, Mohammad Azmi Mohd Zin.

Some 3,000 national and international participants from over 100 countries will converge for the eight-day Congress and General Assembly scheduled to kick off on May 9, 2014. The first FIG International Congress to be held in Asia in the federation’s 136-year history, the event will take place at the award winning Kuala Lumpur Convention Center.

The efforts of PEJUTA were supported by Malaysia Convention and Exhibition Bureau (MyCEB), Kuala Lumpur Convention Center, and other members of Team Malaysia, which include Malaysia Airlines and Kuala Lumpur City Hall. The Malaysian bid also enjoyed industry wide support from Malaysia’s Land Surveyors Board; Board of Quantity Surveyors; Board of Valuers, Appraisers and Estate Agents; Institution of Surveyors Malaysia, Professional Services Development Corporation; and the University of Malaya.

It was truly a glorious moment for Malaysia as Mr. Teo Chee Hai, a nominee of PEJUTA, was also elected the new FIG president for the period 2011-2014. He will be the first FIG president from Asia. Mr. Teo is an executive council member of PEJUTA, a past president of the Institution of Surveyors Malaysia, and current FIG vice president. Commenting on the pooled resources by the Malaysian bid committee, Mr. Teo stated, “It was indeed a Team Malaysia effort, and we are privileged to bring home this win for our country.”

The FIG congress, the most important event in the FIG calendar, is expected to bring some RM35 million in direct visitor expenditure, from 3,000 delegates, to the Malaysian economy in 2014. The congress will aim to gather together a number of surveyors, land professionals, and the spatial science experts, from all over the world.

FIG International Congresses are hosted by FIG together with its local member association and held every four years. The last congresses were held in England, the United States of America, Germany, and most recently in Sydney, Australia. In 2009, Malaysia welcomed an estimated 1.18 million overseas business event visitors. It brought in an estimated RM10.8 billion in visitor spending — a year when the global economy was in crisis and while businesses and business travel was downsizing.

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Linda Hohnholz

Editor in chief for eTurboNews based in the eTN HQ.

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