SEPANG: The Youth and Sports Ministry and the Immigration Department will work closely to ensure smooth and seamless arrival for more than 10,000 Asean participants of Kuala Lumpur 2017 (KL2017).
KL2017 is the brand name of the 29th Southeast Asian Games and the 9th Asean Para Games.
Youth and Sports Minister Khairy Jamaluddin said the strategic cooperation between the two departments will involve overseeing athletes, their trainers, sports contingents and media practitioners arriving in Malaysia at the first point of entry.
"Our engagement with the Immigration Department is to give the best impression for those who will be visiting Malaysia in August and September," he added.
He said the first points of entry include the Kuala Lumpur International Airport (KLIA), the Kuala Lumpur International Airport 2 (klia2), the Sultan Abdul Aziz Shah Airport (Subang Airport),the Langkawi International Airport (LIA) and two land entries in Johor and Kedah.
"Security also remains the most important element when having thousands of foreigners visiting Malaysia, and we are working closely with the department to avoid any unforeseeable incident," Khairy said.
The Southeast Asian Games will take place between Aug 19 and 30, while the Asean Para Games will be held from Sept 17 to 23.
Khairy said the Malaysia SEA Games Organising Committee (Masoc) will assist the Immigration Department by providing details of flights on which contingents will be arriving.
"This will help the department to have sufficient officers at the counters and make sure that the travel experience is smooth, fast and pleasurable," he added.
Khairy said that visas will also be exempted for athletes from countries which would otherwise require them to apply for visas.
"As what was said by the Home Minister himself, visa applications will be waived for athletes, trainers, coaches or media practitioners who are from countries such as Myanmar, China and India.
"However, this move will be temporary, from July 10 to Sept 30. After that, visas will be required as usual," he added.
Khairy was met at a special press conference held by the Immigration Department on the joint initiative at KLIA here today.
Immigration Department director-general Datuk Seri Mustafar Ali said the department will set aside several special lanes for KL2017 participants.
"We are adding four more lanes to ensure smooth passenger flow during arrival," he added.
Mustafar said a series of meetings is being held to discuss the details of preparations for both games.