KUALA LUMPUR - Chinese tourists travelling to Malaysia via Singapore will be issued with visa on arrival, a Malaysian government official said Thursday.

Tourism Promotion Board chairman Dr Ng Yen Yen was quoted by local media report as saying that she hopes travel trade operators in Singapore will take the opportunity to make use of Malaysia's special policy of visa on arrival to attract more Chinese tourists.

"Chinese arrivals are very (much) linked to the Singapore market. If they don't come to Malaysia, they will not come to Singapore. So, we are trying to do our best to develop both," she said during a luncheon event with travel trade operators in Singapore.

When Malaysia Airlines Flight MH370 vanished on March 8 last year, Malaysia experienced a big drop in tourist arrivals from China to the tune of almost 10 percent.