KUALA LUMPUR: Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney is on an official visit here to participate in the 47th Asean Summit and Related Summits as a guest, says Wisma Putra.
It said this will be Carney’s first visit to Malaysia since taking office in March this year.
“Prime Minister Carney will be accompanied by his spouse, Diana Fox Carney, as well as the Export, Promotion, International Trade and Economic Development Minister and senior government officials,” it said yesterday.
Wisma Putra added that Carney will attend the opening ceremony of the 47th Asean Summit and Related Summits today, and the Plenary Session of the summit, where he is invited to deliver his remarks on “The Future Direction of Asean-Canada Dialogue Relations”.
Carney is also scheduled to participate in a moderated discussion at the Asean Business and Investment Summit.
Wisma Putra said Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim will have a bilateral meeting with Carney tomorrow, where discussions are expected to centre on strengthening Malaysia-Canada relations and charting new directions for future collaborations, among others.
The bilateral meeting between Anwar and Carney is also expected to explore opportunities in trade and investment, halal cooperation, energy cooperation, cybersecurity and people-to-people connectivity, it said.
Wisma Putra also said Carney and his wife will attend the gala dinner hosted by Anwar and his wife Datuk Seri Dr Wan Azizah Wan Ismail.
Total trade between Malaysia and Canada last year amounted to RM11.32bil, which is an increase of 33.6% from the previous year.
The first quarter this year saw total trade reaching RM3.26bil, a 38.7% increase compared to the same period last year.
