KOTA KINABALU: Sabah is ready to be a key business events (BE) destination in Malaysia.

This was after Sabah Tourism Board (STB) entered a collaboration with Malaysian Association of Convention and Exhibition Organisers and Suppliers (MACEOS).

Sabah Assistant Tourism, Culture and Environment Minister Datuk Joniston Bangkuai in welcoming the partnerships said business events played an important role in connecting industry leaders.

He witnessed a signing of a memorandum of understanding (MoU) between D’Heritage Sdn Bhd and its strategic partners in skills development and hospitality providers held at the Sabah International Convention Centre (SICC) here.

He said the organising of exhibitions, conferences, meetings and incentive tours could have lasting and positive impacts on the socioeconomic standing of the place where these activities were held.

“Both the government and tourism industry leaders in Sabah are strongly in favour of accelerating developments in this sector in the state,” said Joniston.

He said efforts have been taken to enhance professional networks in Sabah, which will create a legacy for this sector.

He said the “Sabah, Be Here For You” initiative by STB in 2020 was created to provide incentive support to business event (BE) organisers and to maximise the potential of business events.

“The incentive is specifically for events involving corporate meetings, incentive groups, business events and exhibitions.”

Joniston said these types of support were applicable to physical, hybrid and virtual events and a maximum of RM100,000 would be given. To date, 14 events have benefitted from the BE incentive.

He also announced that the state government would subsidise RM600 for business event players in Sabah to join MACEOS.

Meanwhile, MACEOS president Francis Teo said the business environment was vibrant and Sabah was ready for growth in the BE sector.

Teo was in Sabah leading a MACEOS delegation on a familiarisation trip, which also saw the appointment of Datuk Rosmawati Lasuki as the state’s chapter chairman.

Rosmawati, who is Sabah International Convention Centre (SICC) chief executive officer, said the appointment was an opportunity to strengthen the business event capacity in Sabah and boost the capabilities of Sabah players in this sector.

BE is a sizable economic contributor, providing RM3.9 billion in direct revenue to businesses in Malaysia, and creating an economic impact of at least RM9.2 billion (figures from 2019).

It is also an important contributor to bringing in foreign investment into the country and in creating jobs.

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