The Federal Territories (FT) Ministry has targeted Kuala Lumpur to be the top five most visited cities in the world.

The minister, Tengku Adnan Tengku Mansor, said in order to achieve the long-term target, the people, especially city dwellers, should play a vital role in enhancing the image of Kuala Lumpur in the eyes of the world.

He said since the federal capital was the gateway to the country, the attitude, culture and unity displayed by its residents would indirectly become the likeability factors to tourists.

"Kuala Lumpur is a beautiful and safe city, where we can freely move anywhere. These are the things that we've probably forgotten to demonstrate to tourists," Tengku Adnan said when launching the KL Rush Explorace 2017 programme yesterday.

Last year, Mastercard's Global Destinations Cities Index reported that Kuala Lumpur was ranked seventh in the Top 10 Most Visited Cities, with more than 12 million tourists recorded.

Meanwhile, Tengku Adnan said the KL Rush Explorace 2017 programme, which was held for the first time, would be extended to Putrajaya and Labuan in the future.

He said the programme, to be turned into an annual event, was aimed at increasing awareness among society on historical places and tourist destinations.

About 600 people participated in the event which started from the Menara Kuala Lumpur and covered several tourist hot spots, such as the National Museum, Lake Gardens and the Dataran Merdeka.

- Bernama