MELAKA, Melaka Chief Minister Datuk Seri Ab Rauf Yusoh received a courtesy call from popular Chinese movie star Fan Bingbing, who has been appointed Melaka Tourism Ambassador in conjunction with Visit Melaka Year 2024 (VMY2024), at his office here today.
Fan, dressed in a pink kebaya Nyonya, and accompanied by her management team arrived the Chief Minister’s Office in Seri Negeri at about 9.45 am.
In the meeting which lasted for about 30 minutes, Ab Rauf and Fan exchanged views on the form of promotions that can be done by the international celebrity who has great influence on social media
Ab Rauf said the appointment of the lead actor of the drama The Empress of China as the Melaka Tourism Ambassador last Saturday is seen as a catalyst for the Melaka tourism sector, especially in an effort to attract more Chinese tourists to the state in the future.
“Fan initially came to Melaka to travel but on the recommendation of her manager, she will help promote Melaka as she has a considerable influence on social
media,’ he told reporters after the courtesy call session.
“Her presence in Melaka for four days until Sunday would be spent promoting attractive tourist destinations, and thus will provide added value to attract tourists from China.’
He said that through the brief discussion as well, Fan expressed her commitment to help promote Melaka as a major tourist destination among Chinese tourists considering the history of diplomatic relations between Melaka and China since the days of Admiral Cheng Ho’s voyages.
Ab Rauf said in conjunction with the 50th anniversary of Malaysia-China diplomatic relations this year, the actress was also interested in helping to further strengthen existing relations, especially through the tourism sector.
Fan, who has 63 million followers on Weibo (a social media platform in China similar to X) and 4.1 million Instagram followers, is usually highlighted as the face of Chinese culture at the global level.
In addition to Chinese films, she has also starred in the Hollywood superhero
film, X-Men: Days of Future Past, as well as French and Korean movies.
In 2017, she graced the cover of Time magazine and was also named among the magazine’s 100 Most Influential People.
Source: BERNAMA News Agency
