Celebrating the Asean Tourism Standard wins

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Disclaimer: Perpustakaan Tun Abdul Razak,UiTM

Celebrating the Asean Tourism Standard wins

Published on: Sunday, February 12, 2023 By: Kan Yaw Chong

Moment of honour. From left: Julian Jim (STB), Jeremiah Jamson (Mari Mari), Ismail Muile (Taun Gusi Homestay, KB), Datuk Tong King Sing, Datuk Joniston, Tham Yau Kong and Tham Yau Siong.

THIS special report is about Standard – the Asean Tourism Standard, in

particular. Congratulations are due, to Mari Mari Cultural Village, Kionsom, Padas Farmstay, Tenom and Taun Gusi Village Homestay, Kota Belud.

They are the three Sabah tour operators which won the regional level Asean Tourism Standard Award 2023-25 out of a field of 200 awardees, on February 5, presented as a climax to a four-day Asean Tourism Forum 2023, at the Marriot Hotel, Yogyakarta, Indonesia.

Awardees came from Indonesia, Vietnam, Thailand, Lao, Cambodia, Malaysia, Philippines, Singapore, Brunei and Malaysia, who received their awards in a rousing ceremony. Mari Mari Cultural Village and Padas Farmstay won the Asean

Community-based Tourism Standard award while Taun Gusi won the Asean Homestay Tourism Standard award.

This is a regional level award so it’s no small feat.

What the Sabah winners say So how does it feel?

Dares Asaad @ Octavius, Managing Director of Mari Mari Cultural Village, which probably best epitomises a quick experience with Sabah’s famous ethnic and cultural diversity, said: “We feel so privileged for a small Kg concept establishment to be

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given the award. We believe that Sabah has more potentials than we thought. We need to better understand and approach to our rich cultural diversity to showcase it to the world.”

Octavius: Mari Mari MD.

Mari Mari tour guide briefing big group of West Malaysian visitors.

“But what makes me most happy about now is to see the return of tourists to Mari Mari by something like 50pc of the pre-Covid level,” noted Octavious.

True, Daily Express saw throngs of visitors from Korea, West Malaysia and even Russia in a spot visit last Wednesday 9 February, ably guided by both Octavius and Ben Mohd Aidil bin Pulian.

“Because tourist flow is definitely recovering, we now have 50 staff in our

employment, still lower than the 100 before Covid but we are happy about it,” said Mari Mari Manager, Jeremiah Jamson.

If Singapore-based Trip Advisor Vice President Jane Lim had advised ‘pay attention to good experience’, Mari Mari is a distinct indigenous culture experience of Borneo

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but specifically Sabah.

Tham Yau Kong, Managing Director of Padas Farmstay, said: “I feel extremely happy that I achieved it for Sabah and for the nation. Hopefully the tourism

authorities will empower more communities and youths to participate in community- based tourism. The award means when I engage the local communities and youths, they will have strong confidence in what we are trying to empower them to do and make a success of it, besides attracting maybe more tourists for us.”

Padas Farmstay Tenom.

Unfortunately, we could not reach Ismail bin Muile of Taun Gusi Village Homestay, Kota Belud, for comments. But the curious word is ‘standard’ and what hey mean Asean Tourism Standard.

Throughout history, the quest for standard to make things better has been sought, more zealously in some cultures than others, to enable development and to reach consensus in ways that allowed markets and technologies to grow.

So it was a moment of honour for the three Sabah winners to receive the award from Minister of Tourism, Arts and Culture Tourism Malaysia, Datuk Tiong King Sing, who presented the Asean Tourism Standard logo.

A host of criteria to meet: Mari Mari Manager

Jamson, Manager of Mari Mari Cultural Village since its inception 14 years ago, told Daily Express some of the criteria and requirements upon which the tourism outfits are judged and certified.

“Firstly, in terms of community, what have you given back to the community in your area?”

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“Secondly, what are the contributions to the community around?”

“Thirdly, impact on the quality of life on the community here.”

Stunning traditional fire-making experience at the Mari Mari Dusun House for the Korean tourists.

Demo of Bajau kueh jala-making at Mari Mari.

“Fourthly, how we conserve the environment, questions on wastes are asked, such as whether we are recycling or throw things away.”

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“Fifthly, what do we do to encourage interaction between us and the tourists?”

“Sixthly, they also check the quality of guiding and quality of food.”

“Seventhly, they want to know how we promote place to tour operators and other agents.”

“Eighthly, they look at the all-important aspect of safety and hygiene of the

community here. Lastly, what are the innovations and contributions to technology services we can offer to the community around here,” Jeremiah provided interesting pointers in the standards required in the Community-Based Standard category.

13 out of 200 for Malaysia

Back to the event in Yogyakarta, on hand to witness the award presentation include Sabah’s Assistant Minister of Tourism, Culture and Environment, Datuk Joniston Bangkui and Julian Jim, deputy CEO of Sabah Tourism Board, Yau Siong and Kim Leng – Tham’s brother and son respectively.

Overall, Malaysia a total of 13 awards – five under the Asean Homestay Standard category, three under the Asean Community-Based Tourism Standard category and five awards under the Asean Public Toilet Standard category.

Padas Farmstay, Tenom. Tourists get a Lundayeh welcome in village.

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Padas Farmstay Tenom. Tourists learning Lundayeh dance.

The regional level Asean Tourism Standard Award presentation is reserved as a highlight of the annual Asean Tourism Forum which started in 1981 and has since become the largest annual tourism event in the Asean region attended by hundreds of top industry policy makers, practitioners and suppliers of Asean-based tourism.

Origins of Asean standard

The origins of the Asean Tourism Standard awards however, traces back probably to the Asean Tourism Agreement forged in May 2012, which stressed the need for Asean co-operation in making travel into and within Asean easier and more efficient.

Tourism is seen as a benevolent way to narrow the gap economically among Asean member states, foster understanding and stability. Under the Agreement, member states vow to make things better in terms of efficiency and competitiveness of Asean tourism services.

The goal: Excellent destination Asean

Subsequently, the Asean Tourism Standard was apparently hatched in accordance with the Asean Strategic Tourism Plan 2016- 2025, which is a standard for all Asean

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member countries and regional tourism industry players to use as a guide in

providing high quality and excellent service delivery to tourists with the goal to make Asean an excellent destination on a global scale.

A sip of rice wine, anyone, in Dusun House?

Hive of stingless bee and honey tasting experience at Mari Mari.

Criteria and requirements are in place to help member countries in certifying tourism services that meet them in order to obtain an Asean Tourism Standard logo.

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In all, the Asean Tourism Standard covers six categories, namely, Green Hotel; Food and Beverage Services; Public Restroom; Homestay; Ecotourism and Tourism

Heritage.

The Libaran turtle precedence

There was a precedence in Sabah though. In 2022, Sabah’s Walai Penyu Conservation Park in Libaran Island won the national level Asean Sustainable Tourism Standard Award (Rural) 2022-23.

“They checked our sewerage system, checked if we were using local ingredients in our menu, employing local staff and involving local community in our activities,” said CEO Alex Yee who received the award in a ceremony held in Kuala Lumpur. But countries of present day Asean were not always friendly to each other in the past. Older generations remember the 1963 Indonesian Confrontation against Malaysia 1963-65 and Philippines broke diplomatic relations over the Sabah claims in 1963 which was revoked only in 1989.

From confrontation to inter-governmental cooperation

The 60s saw enmity and security threat. But today, Asean has come a long way as a political and economic union of 10 Southeast Asian states to promote inter-

governmental co-operation to facilitate economic, political, security, military, educational, social and cultural integration, with no sign of hostility or hegemonic ambition to dominate one another but instead the spirit of good will and collaboration prevails.