KUCHING – The Ministry of Tourism, Creative Industry and Performing Arts Sarawak (MTCP) and Swinburne University of Technology Sarawak Campus recently organised an enlightening seminar to foster capacity building for owners of rural homestays in the state.
Held at the Grand Margherita Hotel on 16 October 2023, the seminar drew participants from rural homestays of Kampung Telaga Air, Kampung Benuk and Kampung Po Ai Melugu Sri Aman as well as the Sarawak Tourist Guide Association and the Sarawak Homestay Association.
In addition, stakeholders from various government agencies including the Ministry of Tourism, Arts and Culture Malaysia, Ministry of Natural Resources and Urban Development Sarawak, Ministry of Food Industry, Commodity and Regional Development Sarawak, Ministry of International Trade, Industry and Investment Sarawak, Sarawak Tourism Board, Tourism Malaysia, Sarawak Craft Council, Sarawak Arts Council, Sarawak Forestry Department as well as Resident’s Office Kuching and Sri Aman also attended the event.
The seminar was hosted by the Swinburne team of researchers who presented findings from a research project with MTCP that covered homestays in Kampung Telaga Air, Kampung Annah Rais, Kampung Benuk and Kampung Po Ai Melugu Sri Aman areas.
The event also featured an engagement session where participants were able to brainstorm solutions and ideas to address various issues from the research project. Topics discussed included the development of new tourism attractions and products, improvement of rural homestay household incomes, environmental sustainability, preservation of culture and heritage, coordination of marketing programs and branding of local communities.
At the same time, the Swinburne team conducted a digital marketing training workshop for homestay owners to adopt social media tools to increase the visibility of their homestays. The hands-on session helped participants to use Facebook advertisements to reach specific audiences and to track advertising results in real time. Participants also learned how to use hashtags and link their social media to other community websites to create more impact.
Dr Bibiana Lim, the Project Leader of the Swinburne team, said that the purpose of the seminar was to enable engagement among key stakeholders in the industry to help advance homestays in the state. It allowed research findings to be translated into action beneficial for stakeholders.
As a part of the community-based tourism (CBT) concept, rural homestays are a core component of the state ecotourism masterplan, as it emphasises tourism development in tandem with the well-being of local communities, cultures and the environment.
Representing MTCP, Dr Victor Luna, Principal Assistant Secretary and Head of Eco-Tourism and Community-Based Tourism, commented, “The Ministry is pleased to join hands with Swinburne University for this seminar, as it exemplifies our commitment to empowering rural homestay owners with knowledge and skills, further enhancing their contribution to rural tourism.
“We hope this collaboration will continue to create a lasting and meaningful impact in rural communities, fostering growth and sustainability in Sarawak,” he said.
He added that MTCP and Swinburne Sarawak are exploring further projects for future implementation as a follow-up to this.
In recent news, the project team has garnered three prestigious awards at both international and national levels for this project. Read more about this outstanding achievement at https://bit.ly/SUTS131023.
For more information on Swinburne Sarawak, visit its website (www.swinburne.edu.my), Facebook page (@swinburnesarawak), Instagram page (@swinburnesarawak), Twitter page (@Swinburne_Swk), TikTok page (@swinburnesarawak) or YouTube channel (Swinburne Sarawak).