On Sunday, Aug. 31, Malaysia marks her 57th year as a free and sovereign state. I take this opportunity to express our heartfelt gratitude to Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Abdullah, the government and the people of Saudi Arabia for the warm hospitality and excellent cooperation extended to Malaysians throughout the Kingdom.

Malaysia and Saudi Arabia enjoy close brotherly relations rooted in our common faith and derive their strength from a shared vision and commonality of interest. Saudi Arabia is one of the countries that had sent its representatives during Malaysia’s proclamation of independence on Aug. 31, 1957. Trade and investment remain as the major cornerstone of both countries. Every year, thousands of Malaysians visit Makkah and Madinah to perform Umrah and Haj. More than 95,000 Saudis visited Malaysia last year to experience “Malaysia Truly Asia,” one of the most fascinating and popular destinations in the Islamic world.

Many exciting things are unfolding in Malaysia. Not only with tourism as you normally get to see from the media, but equally exciting are the trade and investment opportunities. Malaysia aspires toward becoming a high income, sustainable, inclusive and developed economy by 2020. Malaysia has a highly open economy and is a leading exporter of electrical appliances, electronic parts and components, palm oil, and natural gas.

In this respect, Malaysia has enjoyed good trade relations with Saudi Arabia, proven by the fact that the bilateral trade between Malaysia and the Kingdom has increased by more than three-fold at the end of 2013 to $3.07 billion from $955.1 million in 2000. From January–June 2014, Malaysia total trade with Saudi Arabia was $2.01 billion which is a 20.1 percent increase compared to the same period last year. The volume of Malaysian exports to the Kingdom was $1.086 billion (SR4.07 billion) in 2013. The exports included electric and electronic products, metal industries, machinery, spare parts, chemical and wood products.

Meanwhile, Malaysia’s major imports from the Kingdom included crude oil, refined oil and chemical products. The Kingdom is the 19th biggest commercial trade partner with Malaysia and the 16th biggest importer. While we are glad that the trade volume between Malaysia and Saudi Arabia has improved significantly within a short span of time, we further believe that trade ties between both countries can be further expanded and diversified through partnership between the public and private sectors.

In tourism, Saudi Arabia is an important market; we received more than 95,000 Saudis last year. Apart from enjoying holiday in Malaysia, a substantial numbers of Saudi brothers and sisters also avail the state-of-the-art health care which is ranked among the world’s Top 3 health tourism destinations in 2013. Malaysia received a record 27.7 million tourists in 2013 generating $21.8 billion or SR80.6 billion revenue for the government. This year is designated as Visit Malaysia Year and we looked forward to welcome more tourist from Saudi Arabia to avail the best medical facilities and to experience an unforgettable holiday in a tropical paradise.

As the consul general of Malaysia in Jeddah, I am pleased that Malaysia’s bilateral relations with Saudi Arabia have continued to be warm and friendly with the two countries enjoying unprecedented levels of win-win cooperation in all fields. I would like to invite more Saudi tourists to consider Malaysia for their vacation destination as it offers many places of interest in addition to the excellent medical facilities and world-class treatment.

No doubt, the medical facilities available are comparable to those found in developed countries and yet the price for services offered is highly competitive. Malaysia also provides opportunity for foreigners to stay in Malaysia under “Malaysia My Second Home Program” on a long stay social visit pass with multiple entry visa. I also would like to encourage more students from Saudi Arabia to pursue their studies in Malaysia as we offer excellent standard of education in many different fields at a fraction of costs.

I pray to Allah Almighty for the continued progress and prosperity of Saudi Arabia and its people. May the brotherly and friendly relations that our two countries and the people enjoy continue to be strengthened as we progress.

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The writer is Malaysian consul-general.