TICA MICE UPDATE

The conference puts ASEAN’s second-tier cities in a spotlight and shares ideas on how MICE business can improve income distribution and enhance regional economic growth in the sustainable way.

Thailand Convention and Exhibition Bureau (Public Organization) or TCEB organises the ASEAN MICE Conference 2018 at the 37th ASEAN Tourism Forum 2018 (ATF 2018) in Chiang Mai. Held for the first in conjunction with ASEAN’s most significant annual tourism promotional event, the conference showcases MICE Cities and creates business opportunities for the second tier cities. TCEB expects that the conference opens a collaborative platform for stakeholders in ASEAN's MICE industry to develop networks, gather and exchange ideas to create guidelines for the non-capital cities in the way to benefit from MICE activities and enhance the sustainable growth of local economy.

Mrs. Supawan Teerarat, Senior Vice President, Strategic Business Development and Innovation of TCEB said, “Working under the ASEAN framework is a great opportunity to exchange experiences and knowledge with the member countries. The partnership encourages collaboration in many significant areas, for example, the policy coordination that promotes MICE industry and the development of infrastructure and MICE facilities which to open new opportunities for ASEAN cities to cater the needs of global MICE travellers in the future. Our focus of this conference is to promote MICE cities as well as the second tier cities in order to offer travellers more choices of MICE destinations, and in the same time, generate income to local economy in the non-capital cities. The practice is in line with our corporate direction which focuses on driving MICE industry into a key sector in enhancing the local economic development. Also, the work is in response to Thailand's 20-Year National Strategy (2017 - 2036). The roadmap guides the country toward equitable and sustainable development driven by the vision of stability, prosperity, and sustainability, and through a development approach guided by Sufficiency Economy Philosophy. By following the policy and the MICE development master plan that emphasises on the growth with equality, therefore, TCEB establishes the operational guidelines to support and enhance the development of MICE cities and the growth of MICE business in the potential second-tier cities. In addition, TCEB implements the ‘Area-Based’ development approach to improve engagement and enhance proactive cooperation with local MICE operators. With this approach, we can create development strategies which are specially planned to suit each specific area.”

Organised under the theme ASEAN MICE Cities: Asia’s Power House, the conference creates a knowledge-based platform for delegates. The event encourages idea exchange on the development of MICE Cities and capacity building for the second-tier cities. These key topics, which ASEAN member countries show interest in, can be applied to MICE development model in their countries.

Highlights of topics at the conference include: "Thailand MICE Cities: Powering Up for the Future" The session showcases the development of Thailand’s MICE cities namely: Chiang Mai, Khon Kaen, and Pattaya, in the way that local communities can share benefits from MICE which includes networking, collaboration, trade and investment, profile and knowledge sharing. “Destination Success: Collaboration and Partnerships. A case study on Best Cities Global Alliance” the keynote speech by Mr.Paul Vallee, Managing Director of BestCities Global Alliance. Mr. Paul shares his vision and strategies to leverage resources and how destinations anywhere can benefit by working with like-minded partners. "Developing Future MICE Destinations: Standards, Co-created Spaces, and Local Aspirations" by Dr.Surapit Promsit, Director of Master of Business Administration Program in Global Business Management (International Program). The discussion focuses on the policy framework to develop MICE destinations covering issues such as local and international standards, working with local communities, and new ways of MICE activities. And the panel discussion on “MICE Cities: Seeing Opportunities, Not Challenges” The talk focuses on how the non-capital cities tap into their assets and turn the challenges into opportunities to develop MICE industry. The panellists in this session include experts and top executives from convention bureaus from non-capital cities include the state of Sarawak, Malaysia; Fukuoka, Japan and Gyeongju, South Korea.

Ms. Amelia Roziman, Chief Operating Officer, Sarawak Convention Bureau or SCB said, “Second-tier cities can significantly rise, as long as they use a clever marketing or branding model and retain their authenticity to avoid becoming a clone of a first tier. From our experience, Sarawak envelops both the mystique of Borneo and international-standard amenities. The potential is real, as we have attracted gold standard events - such as the 55th ICCA Congress 2016.

SCB’s role is to market the brand of “Sarawak as a Business Events destination” to the world. We work closely with our partners, which are government and private sectors, all stakeholders have an equally important role to co-own and uphold this brand. All of us are ambassadors and active promoters of the destination. As such, communication barriers would need to be mitigated swiftly. Goals within this ecosystem need to be aligned, communicated, and parties are held accountable – to which we have established Government and Industry Relations department to actively promote synergy and to encourage other agencies to work along with us. A great example is our dedicated partnership programme, ‘BESarawak’; to communicate, educate and award the Business Events sector. The program creates the “yield beyond tourism”, such as opportunities for corporate social responsibility, nation-building education & technology exchange, research alliances, global publicity, international partnerships.”

In the same week of the ATF in Chiang Mai, TCEB will join its alliances namely the Pacific Asia Travel Association (PATA), The Tourism Authority of Thailand (TAT), and Khon Kaen Province, to host a press conference to announce the PATA Destination Marketing Forum 2018. Scheduled to be held during the 28th -30th November 2018 in Khon Kaen, the international event reflects a collective effort of all stakeholders in the MICE industry in response to the Thai government's policy to stimulate and develop the regional economy. Khon Kaen is one of Thailand's MICE Cities which features excellent potential and readiness to host international conferences. The press conference to announce the PATA Destination Marketing Forum 2018 will be held on the 26th January 2018 at the Chiang Mai International Exhibition and Convention Centre.

Meanwhile, in the evening of 26th January, TCEB will join the certification ceremony of ASEAN MICE Venue Standard (AMVS) at the ASEAN Tourism Awards & Closing Ceremony. At the event, certified MICE operators from 10 ASEAN member countries will be receiving certifications from Tourism Ministers from each country. The event is considered as another milestone for TCEB which the bureau has been leading the development of the AMVS, as a result of the nationwide success of the Thailand MICE Venue Standard (TMVS).

In the fiscal year 2017 (September 2016 - October 2017), Thailand’s MICE Cities namely Chiang Mai, Pattaya, Khon Kaen, and Phuket hosted 4,612 MICE events which attracted 692,788 delegates. These business events generated 63,773.04 million baht in revenue to the cities. The success is a great example of the non-capital cities where the development of MICE business can drive the local economic growth.

In overall, Thailand welcomed 36,364,467 MICE travellers which generated 179,601 million baht in revenue to the country. Of those figures, 1,047,959 were international MICE travellers generating 88,459 baht in revenue, and 35,316,508 were domestic MICE travellers generating 91,142 million baht in revenue to the country.

The upcoming and exciting MICE events and festivals which will happen in Thailand this year include: the TDMM –Thailand Domestic MICE MART 2018 in Bangkok; the LIMEC Luangprabang-Indochina- Mawlamyine Economic Corridor in Phitsanulok, Sukhothai, and Kamphaeng Phet; the Herbalife North Asia Extravaganza 2018 in Bangkok; the International conference PATA Destination Marketing Forum 2018 in Khon Kaen; Sport Accord Convention 2018 in Bangkok; the World Cyber Game 2018; ASEAN Sustainable Energy Week 2018; Bangkok Design Week 2018; Asian Side of the Doc 2018; Bangkok Entertainment Fest; and Chiang Mai Blooms.