PENANG, July 7 — George Town’s second anniversary celebration to mark its declaration as Unesco World Heritage Site, today kicked off with a procession of 50 decorated trishaws in the city.

Chief Minister Lim Guan Eng joined in the procession which began at the Penang Municipal Council heritage building at 9am, and ended at the Yap Kongsi building in Armenian Street about 1pm.

In conjunction with the anniversary, a month-long festival themed ‘The Unforgettable George Town’ will also be held to promote the heritage city to the public.

Eighty programmes have been lined-up throughout the festival, including  theatre and opera performances, classic dance, film and fashion shows, as well as photography exhibitions.

A total of 228 local and international artistes from 16 ethnic groups have also been invited to perform during the festival.

Among the artistes are Japanese street opera soprano singer Ranko Kurano, Indian classical dancer Ramli Ibrahim, opera maestro from Beijing, China, Ghaffar Pourazar and Italian singer Patrizio Buanne.

Earlier, Lim also launched the George Town World Heritage Incorporated (GTWHI) logo and web portal aimed at disseminating information on Penang’s heritage and culture.

In his speech, Lim said GTWHI, which was established to manage and monitor the implementation of the World Heritage Site Management Plan, had carried out several proposals, including the setting up of the Heritage Clinic aimed at offering consultancy services and feedback to relevant parties.

“Apart from that, the state government will also work closely with Universiti Sains Malaysia, Penang Municipal Council, state economic planning unit and relevant government agencies to implement data sharing programme through the Geographic Information System to improve the GTWHI resource centre which is expected to be ready in September,” he added. — Bernama