Yang di-Pertuan Agong Al-Sultan Abdullah Ri'ayatuddin Al-Mustafa Billah has called for efforts to restore the country's tourism sector after the cancellation of Visit Malaysia Year 2020 due to the Covid-19 pandemic.

At his royal address to open the 14th Parliament yesterday, he said that tourism industry players at the same time must strive in strengthening (their) tourism products and packages, as well as maintaining the existing infrastructure to restore the glory of the country's tourism sector.

He said as the host, Malaysia holds a huge responsibility in determining the direction of Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (Apec) 2020 meetings.

He said this involves setting new platforms for economic collaborations in the region post-Covid-19.

"I have faith my government will deliver an effective leadership towards those efforts and to chart a new Apec vision to replace the Bogor Goals which end this year."

Sultan Abdullah also urged other industry players to step up efforts to complement government's initiatives in embracing the Industrial Revolution 4.0 (IR4.0).

He said the government had been working on creating an ecosystem that supported industries through funding and incentives, support-infrastructure development and regulatory frameworks.

"Newly emerging growth sources such as 5G technology, artificial intelligence, internet of things, and big data analytics will be intensified.

"Hence, we urge industry players to step up efforts to complement the government's initiatives," he said.

Sultan Abdullah said to ensure that the nation remained consistently ahead in various areas, the advancement in the IR4.0 must be fully utilised.

"This is to promote access to and equality in education besides the emphasis on knowledge, skills, and character development," he said.