KUCHING: For last year alone, Sarawak secured an estimated total economic impact of RM293.27 million and expected direct delegate expenditure of RM159.38 million from 80 secured events to take place from now until 2026.
In saying this, Tourism, Arts and Culture Minister Datuk Abdul Karim Rahman Hamzah added that from these figures, RM17.59 million of the total tax revenue was expected to generate at least 23,276 job placements for Sarawakians in the years that the respective events are to be held.
“While we live in a time where uncertainties reign our business and travel outlook, these figures prove that Sarawak is still a destination of choice for business event planners.
“What we must do now is to progress with the demands of the industry. Without a doubt, hosting meetings and events in a world affected by Covid-19 requires us to make major changes and adjustments.”
He said this in his message in conjunction with the virtual launch of the ‘Meet Differently’ campaign by Place Borneo conducted via Zoom and Facebook Live today.
He said there was a need to regulate the nature, format, and size of events to ensure everyone’s safety and peace of mind, hence the need to ‘Meet Differently’.
Noting that more events had adopted virtual platforms in the last year, he expressed his belief that hybrid events – a combination of both virtual and physical – with strict standard operating procedures would be the way forward in the future.
“It gives the best of both worlds and attendees from all over the world can have a choice to attend physically or virtually.”
He also stressed upon the need to mitigate uncertainties among travellers and event participants with industry-friendly policies and guidelines – calling upon destination hosts, event planners, and travel organisers to assure the public through friendly refund policies, customised travel insurance, and so on.
“We must remember to instil confidence in attendees through clear and transparent information and communication.
“Via campaigns like ‘Meet Differently’, we can communicate directly on the state, readiness, and measures related to health, hygiene, and safety that we will take to boost delegate confidence and attendance.”
He said the state government was always ready to help in providing information on best practices and guidelines for venues and event planners to undertake when crafting their events.
At the same time, he urged business event planners and all industry partners to strengthen their collaborations with Business Events Sarawak (BESarawak) as the joint direction was to develop hybrid events.
“With an internationally recognised marketing campaign known as ‘Tribe Legacy Sarawak’, the bureau is welcoming industry players to further generate ideas and discussions on what can be done to mitigate and craft a worthwhile experience for business events.”
Abdul Karim said it would take a combined effort for everyone to work together and restart the industry with safe in-person events and hybrid functions.
