Page 12 - PUCM Malaysia China Entrepreneur Vol.00

About PUCM & President 马来西亚中国企业家联合会和总会长简介
Spotlight on
China Business NGO
聚焦马来西亚中国企业家联合会
The Star Sunday, 7 Jan 2018
DATUK Keith Li Zhongping, president of China Entrepreneurs Association in Malaysia (PUCM), may probably be the only Chinese national who has played golf with Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak.
The picture of him golfing with the Malaysian leader is proudly hung at the entrance to his office in Ampang, Kuala Lumpur. And so is the photograph of Li receiving a datukship from the Pahang Sultan in September 2015.
A glimpse into the activities of PUCM and the background of Li explains why he is now an influential figure in Malaysia and China.
“We give advice to government groups in Malaysia before they visit China. Some of the world’s top 500 Chinese companies are our members,” says Li in an interview with Sunday Star.
The organisation is the most active and high profile among the associations set up by China-linked companies to look after the interest of their members in Malaysia. There are now more than 1,000 companies, in various fields, from China. Since 2005, Li has been promoting China-Malaysia relations by introducing Chinese investments into this Asean country and featuring Malaysia as a tourist destination.
“I came here 20 years ago to set up a joint venture travel company, between me and the Chinese government companies. Since 2005, I have been promoting Malaysia to
Chinese investors and tourists,” says Li, who is now a permanent resident here after marrying Malaysian Nicole Quah.
The GTC group of Companies, 70% owned by Li and 30% by the Chinese government companies, is said to be among the top few “quality” travel companies that is focused on bringing in tourists from the Middle Kingdom into Malaysia.
GTC is also the local travel agent for provincial state-owned tourism promotion centres in China. Among these are Nanjing, Ningsia, Shandong and Guanzhou. The 47-year-old business leader says he wants the association to interact more with the Malay community from now on.
“In the past 40 years, Malaysia-China bilateral relations have improved a lot. However, we have not done much on cultural exchangesandcommunicationwiththeMalaycommunity, who forms the majority of the local multi-racial population.
10 | PUCM 2nd Anniversary Issue