Bilateral Tourism Growth To Be Discussed at Astana Economic Forum, Kazakhstan - Msia Tourism Minister

KUALA LUMPUR, May 18 (Bernama) -- Tourism Minister Dr Ng Yen Yen will be leading a 25-member Malaysian delegation to the Fifth Astana Economic Forum (AEF) in Astana, Kazakhstan. At the three-day AEF from Tuesday, the minister will meet the host country's Industry and New Technology Minister Asset Isekeshev to discuss bilateral cooperation on tourism development. Science, Technology and Innovation Ministry Deputy Secretary-General, Dr Sharifah Zarah Syed Ahmad and SapuraKencana Petroleum Bhd President, Shahril Shamsuddin, will also attend the forum themed "Global Economic Transformation: Challenges and Perspectives of Development". The forum is held to gather economists, experts, people's representatives to discuss and find solutions to Kazakhstan's socio-economic, legal and cultural issues and the world's economic development, the ministry said in a statement Friday. The forum will also provide recommendations for economic growth and sustainability to the Kazakhstan Government, the governments of countries attending the forum and the Group of Twenty (G-20) nations. This year, the fifth AEF, is expected to shed light on some of the most pressing economic issues and offer participants a chance to interact with Nobel Prize winners and secure business opportunities. Kazakhstan President Nursultan Nazarbayev will open the forum on Wednesday to be attended by over 6,500 delegates from 85 countries. Among them are former British prime minister Tony Blair, Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan, Hungarian architect and engineer Erno Rubik, the inventor of Rubik Cube. The Global Energy-Ecological Forum will also take place on the sidelines of the forum. -- BERNAMA