The Malaysia Convention & Exhibition Bureau (MyCEB) assembled a congregation of the business events industry association executives and Kesatria (conference ambassadors) members for its Association Day, held at World Trade Centre Kuala Lumpur (WTCKL), 14 March.
MyCEB kickstarted the journey of hosting Association Day in 2022 as a platform to share education, advocacy and professionalism in association management. This year, the bureau has co-organised with the Malaysia Society of Association Executive (MSAE) with a renewed goal to elevate the professionalism of association management.
This year, the Association Day marks an important milestone with the presence of a keynote speaker from the chair of the Board of Directors of American Society of Association Executives, Ms. Lakisha Ann to explain how effective association management operates in the United States.
Marking 12 years of Kesatria membership, the premier congress ambassador programme for Malaysia, the day saw a ceremony honouring the appointment of five new Kesatria.
YB Khairul Firdaus Akbar Khan, deputy minister of tourism, arts and culture (MOTAC) told the conference: “The core business of MyCEB is to make Malaysia a world leader in the hosting of business, cultural and hallmark sporting events. It is in our interest to ensure that associations in Malaysia showcase our people and our capabilities. It is for this reason that it is important for associations to be well managed, and equipped with the necessary skills… With Associations being a leading driver of community development, we will be able to organically attract international businesses here.”
Dato’ Sri Dr. Abdul Khani Daud, CEO of MyCEB also welcomed the movers and shakers of the industry to Association Day, saying: “Many associations managed by volunteer leaders ‘by accident’ get into this space, meanwhile, many other associations are taking association management as a profession. Therefore, MyCEB welcomes the members of the Board of Directors from ASAE in a timely manner to adopt their best practices, this is how association can harness the advancement of the community and society.”
The new MyCEB KESATRIA appointees are:
- Tan Sri Datuk Ter Leong-Yap – honorary life president, The Chinese Chamber of Commerce and Industry of Kuala Lumpur & Selangor
- Dato’ Dr. Hari Chandran Thambinayagam – Neurosurgeon, UM Specialist Centre
- Datuk Ar. Tan Pei Ing – Secretary-general, International Union of Architects (UIA)
- Datuk Jeffery Sandragesan – Honorary consul in Basel¸ Embassy of Malaysia, Berne, Switzerland
- Jamalul Azizi Abdul Rahaman – Chairman, The Malaysian Association for Bronchology and Interventional Pulmonology (MABIP)
