KUCHING, 24 June 2020: Minister of Tourism, Arts & Culture Sarawak, YB Datuk Haji Abdul Karim Rahman Hamzah announced Monday several State initiatives for travel agents and tour operators in Sarawak to help restart the tourism industry that has been severely affected by the Covid-19 pandemic.
The two new initiatives are the Visitors Incentive Package (VIP) and the Sarawak Tourism Online Ecosystem Fund.
For the VIP package, travel agencies in Sarawak gain support for tour packages sold for a minimum of four people up to a maximum of 15, excluding children below two years old.
VIP Incentive Package
1. 3D/ 2N package: The agent will receive MYR30 for each tourist, for the first four tourists and an additional MYR20 for each subsequent tourist up to 15.
2. 4D/ 3N package: The agent will receive MYR40 for each tourist, for the first four tourists and an additional MYR25 for each subsequent tourist up to 15.
3. 5D/ 4N package: The agent will receive MYR50 for each tourist, for the first four tourists and an additional MYR30 for each subsequent tourist up to 15.
Online Ecosystem Fund
The Sarawak Tourism Online Ecosystem Fund is a catalytic programme to expand Sarawak Tourism’s digital footprint and Share of Voice (SOV) in collaboration with industry partners.
SDTB offers financial incentives of up to RM5,000 per tour operator for website development and maintenance, content production and digital advertising which focusses on Sarawak Tourism.
In addition, digital roadshows will also be conducted in Kuching, Sibu, Bintulu, Miri, Bakalalan and Bario.
According to YB Datuk Karim, the government acknowledges the impact of the pandemic on tourism players and these initiatives have been crafted to boost and motivate tourism partners to facilitate tourism activities and increase tourist arrivals during the recovery phase.
“The Sarawak Tourism Online Ecosystem Fund seeks to align all industry players, with its key objective being the enhancement of digital economy within the Tourism Sector. It also aims at supporting and enhancing the use of e-commerce to drive more traffic within the ecosystem,” added Datuk Karim.
The announcement was made at the Sarawak Reopens For Tourism” event held at the Borneo Convention Centre Kuching and attended by over 100 industry partners including Sarawak Tourism Federation, Association Sarawak Inbound Agents, Malaysian Association of Hotels (Sarawak Chapter), Sarawak Tourism Board and the Ministry of Tourism, Arts & Culture Sarawak.
All Sarawak tour operators are invited to apply for the incentives which will be made available from 1 July 2020 to 31 December 2020.
To find out more contact Sarawak Tourism Board at 082 423600 or [email protected]
Visit: www.sarawaktourism.com
