Tourist who seek for information at STB will be amazed by our courteous and friendly staffs

Objectives

The mission of the Sarawak Tourism Board is to :

- Create awareness among the trade, media and public of the diversity of tourism products, both on a regional and international basis.
- Position Sarawak as a prime destination for culture for culture, nature and adventure tourism to both regional and international markets.

To achieve these objectives, Sarawak Tourism Board acts as the vehicle to spread information by :

- Participating in trade events in selected target markets
- Organsisng educational tour for the trade as well as the professional and public media
- Cooperating with Tourism Malaysia in its promotion
- Acting as a centre of information with promotional materials for the trade, media & public.

Target Destinations

Visitors' Information Centre is available in every division in Sarawak

The current strategy for promotion and marketing for the State tourism industry is to target the regional market such as China and the Middle East where there is potential to develop the State as a great family entertainment destinations. However, with the outbreak of the Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome (SARS) throughout the world recently, this could badly affect the tourism industry as people are afraid to travel and those from SARS affected areas are banned from entering the State.

The Europe market will still be maintained but less focus will be given as they are quite reluctant to travel to Muslim countries following the aftermath of the September 11 incident. However, the Australian market still features strongly in our list of destinations with Singapore following closely behind.

Strategy

Success in the tourism industry does not depend solely on the number of tourist arrivals into the State.

According to its Public Affairs Executive, Encik Benedict Jimbau, there has to be a balance between the “cheap” travellers and the ones that spend. In terms of numbers, Sarawak can be considered successful but quality is still what we are after, he added.

For example, tourists travelling on long haul destinations (Europe, Australia) ususally spend an average of 7-10 days in the State while the short haul destinations such as Singapore will usually spend about 2-3 days only.

Efforts is being made to increase awareness of Sarawak as the preferred tourists’ destination as far as nature, culture and adventure is concerned. . For example, infrastructure in Mulu National Park (declared a World Heritage Site) has been improved. It has a new airport, good and inexpensive chalets, hostels, a canteen and a five-star resort/hotel.

Another strategy is to develop our MICE ( Meetings. Incentive, Conference and Exposition) market.

According to Sarawak Minister of Tourism, Dato Sri Abang Haji Abdul Rahman Zohari bin Tun Abang Haji Openg, Sarawak will develop its MICE market with a difference - with cultural themes that will set it apart from those offered in Kuala Lumpur or Singapore, for example.

Sarawak Tourism Year 2003

2003 marks Sarawak’s 40th year of independence within Malaysia. In conjunction with this celebration, Sarawak has also announced this year to be Sarawak Tourism Year. Many activities have been planned for the whole year to celebrate the occasion.

More effort and creative marketing strategy needs to be developed to compete with other states especially Johor and Perak which are also promoting their Visit Johor Year 2003 and Visit Perak Year 2003 respectively.

Several attractive travel packages have been offered to attract domestic tourists to Sarawak. These included the Syok Sarawak package, We did it in Sarawak package, Discover Sarawak package to mention a few.

In fact, the government has allocated a budget of RM11.8 million for its Promotions and Operations for 2003.

One of the staffs showing off the organization chart

Staff

Sarawak Tourism Board is divided into three divisions : Marketing, Administration and Finance and Corporate Affairs. STB employs 49 staff. There is a new special unit to take care of the MICE market.

Awards

Since its formation in 1995, Sarawak Tourism Board has won 17 awards from all over the world (please refer Table 1)

Looking Forward

The Sarawak Tourism Board’s goal is to continue raising awareness of the destination, with the objective of increasing arrivals to the State at the rate of 5% to 15% annually. STB will target primarily the domestic Malaysian market and the regional markets of Singapore, Taiwan and Australia. Secondary markets such as North America, Scandinavia, France , Italy and Spain and the Benelux countries will also be targeted through the Board’s extensive Public Relations and Trade Shows Programme.

The Sarawak Tourism Board is committed to work closely with members of the industry and the media, with the aim of bringing Sarawak to the world and the world to Sarawak.

Contact

Sarawak Tourism Board
6th & 7th Floor, Bangunan Yayasan Sarawak
Jalan Masjid 93400 Kuching
PO Box 2950,
93758 Kuching, Sarawak
Tel: 082 - 423600,
Fax: 082 - 416700
e-mail: stb@sarawaktourism.com
www.sarawaktourism.com

Sarawak Tourism Board is the first Government Agency in the State to receive the ISO9000 certification for Occupational Safety and Health Award. The award was given in April 2003.