DUBAI: Building a better brand for Malaysia is among the plans that have been drawn up in conjunction with Prime Minister Datuk Seri Ismail Sabri Yaakob's three-day official visit to the United Arab Emirates (UAE) starting today until March 31.

Ismail Sabri's maiden visit to the country after being appointed as Malaysia's ninth Prime Minister on Aug 21 last year, is also expected to enhance and strengthen bilateral relations between Malaysia and the UAE as well as other post-pandemic recovery efforts.

Malaysian Ambassador to the UAE Datuk Mohd Tarid Sufian said the visit would open up opportunities to enhance closer ties between the two countries, especially at the highest leadership level.

He said apart from holding meetings with key leaders in the UAE, Ismail Sabri would also participate in the Expo 2020 Dubai which lasted for six months from October last year to March 31 this year.

"This is the best platform for the country to build a good brand as the expo is attended by 192 countries as well as international organisations.

"We can showcase our new technologies, ideas as well as innovations and promote the country's advantages that can be leveraged by Malaysia's trading partners and other countries to address the current challenges," he told a press conference in conjunction with the Prime Minister's visit, here.

On the second day of his visit to the UAE, Ismail Sabri is scheduled to visit the Malaysia Pavilion at the Expo 2020 Dubai and expected to witness the signing of several memoranda of understanding (MoU) between Malaysian and foreign companies.

With the Malaysia Pavilion's focus on achieving a net zero emission in line with the country's sustainable development goals, it also provides the best platform for Malaysia to showcase its innovative technologies and holistic solutions to the world.

Mohd Tarid said the Prime Minister would also hold a meeting with members of Keluarga Malaysia (Malaysian Family) in the UAE.

Currently, there are about 6,000 Malaysians working as professionals, especially in the aviation and oil and gas industries in the UAE.

"This is a good opportunity for the Prime Minister to share the country's ideas, experiences and aspirations to Malaysians here," he said.

He said Malaysia and the UAE could also work together in the fields of education and higher learning as both countries had the same aspiration to become an education hub.

"We want to make Malaysia an education hub...we can forge a strategic collaboration with the UAE as we share the same aspiration," he said.

Mohd Tarid said Malaysia could not only attract UAE students to Malaysia but also citizens of other countries as there were people from more than 200 nationalities living in the UAE.

-- BERNAMA