When talking to average Malaysians it shows that the Netherlands is generally not so well known. One thinks predominantly of an inviting country with windmills and tulips. Famous Dutch people are Ruud van Nistelrooij, Johan Cruijf and Van Gogh; Dutch brands or companies, however, are not that well-known. Also interesting is the contrast with Portuguese heritage, especially considering the fact that the Portuguese where here longer ago, for a shorter period than the Dutch and that there is considerably more Dutch heritage in Malaysia than there is Portuguese.

Is this a bad thing? Given the fact that the Netherlands can be considered as part of the world top economically and culturally, this bruises our national pride slightly. More important though is that because of this the Dutch business world, tourism, universities and culture can not take advantage of first ackknowledgement. The first choice of where to study, where to go on holiday, where one wants to open their business abroad, and with which businesses to work together or trade is after all hugely influenced by first recognition. If the Netherlands is not considered first, a chance has been missed.

For this reason the Embassy of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, together with the MDBC and Dutch businesses in Malaysia, has been trying to make Malaysians more familiar with the Netherlands and the Dutch product. The events of the celebration of 50 years of Malaysian independence and 50 years of diplomatic relations between Malaysia and the Netherlands in 2007 were seized to start a campagne titled 'Holland, More than Tulips', intended to incite Malaysian to learn more about the Netherlands.

It has been decided to continue this campagne after 2007 as well. As many events as possible that can act as Holland promotion will be organised under the header 'Holland, More than Tulips'. The events will be posted in a special section of the embassy website (click here), so please keep an eye on that section!

Lody Embrechts
Ambassador 

This website is established for Dutch, Malaysian and other citizens to search information about the Netherlands, the Embassy and its affairs.

For further information, please contact:  kll@minbuza.nl