MASwings can benefit from ‘link-ups’ with private sector

KUCHING: MASwings Sdn Bhd (MASwings) should explore ‘link-up’ opportunities with the private sector in the Brunei-Indonesia-Malaysia-the Philippines East Asean Growth Area (BIMP-EAGA) region.

Industry sources observed that the recent annoucements that MASWings was gearing itself to venture into the BIMP-EAGA routes as early as February 2012 would be far more successful if the rural service airline paid attention to further ‘tie-ups’ with third parties.

They explained that for long-term sustainability, a common package among the destinations in the regions should be established, and that required the involvement of the private sector in all fields such as travel agencies, hotel associations and so on.

“When common packages are in place, only then can joint promotion and marketing strategies be explored between the region. In order to retain viable routes, study as well as research should be done within the private sector too,” BIMP-EAGA Tourism Council Malaysia chairman Datuk Wee Hong Seng told The Borneo Post.

He further pointed out that tourism is a private sector driven initiative. “The private sector plays a vital role in contributing to the country’s economy and also helps to maintain the sustainability of the airline industry.”

“Within the BIMP-EAGA region, there is a massive population base of more than 60 million, covering an area of 1.56 million square kilometres. Considering the vast tracks of unexplored routes, it augurs well for the region to ?et cracking?and connect the dots,” he stressed.

Within the region, there existed a memorandum of understanding on ‘Expansion of Air Linkages’ between the governments of BIMP-EAGA, which was signed back in January 2007. It granted the Fifth Freedom Traffic Right (FFTR) airports in the EAGA countries to cater for EAGA carriers.

The FFTR arrangements allowed an air carrier of one EAGA member country to pick up traffic in the territory of the other EAGA member country and carry it to a third EAGA member country as part of the service to/from the home country of the operating carrier.

“Technically the MoU should propel BIMP-EAGA air services into a whole new scenario – an ‘open sky’ era, however that has not yet materialised. With the support given from the region, MASwings should be able to create a niche in the hotly contested air routes competition provided it takes into account other private sector participation startegies,” said Wee.

Currently, MASwings owns 10 ATR 72-500s and four DHC-6 Twin Otters. It was required to acquire at least four jetliners in order to fulfill the requirement of being a regional airline. Speculations were rife that MASwings may be acquiring the 737-800s aircraft from one of its sister companies Firefly under MAS.

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Cebu Pacific Air Seeks To Expand Operations to Kuching

KUCHING -- Low-cost carrier Cebu Pacific Air of the Philippines seeks to expand its international routes in Malaysia by making Kuching its next stop after Kuala Lumpur and Kota Kinabalu, Sarawak Tourism Board (STB) CEO Datuk Rashid Khan said Sunday.

He said STB would facilitate and assist the airline in offering its service in this capital city of Sarawak.

"We welcome you and hope to work together towards a win-win situation and, particularly, in promoting the Brunei, Indonesia, Malaysia, Philippines East Asean Growth Area (BIMP-EAGA) region," he said in a statement.

Rashid Khan said a delegation from Cebu Pacific Air, led by its International Sales and Distribution Systems Manager Leopoldo B. Coronel, and officers from the Philippine Tourism Department called on him yesterday and expressed their interest to expand the airline's operation to Kuching.

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KK and Kuching airports to emerge as transport hub for BIMP-EAGA

KOTA KINABALU: The federal government’s decision to allow MASwings to launch its first phase of operations into the Brunei, Indonesia, Malaysia, Philippines-East Asia Growth Area (BIMP-EAGA) is a forward looking move long awaited by the people of Sabah and Sarawak, says Deputy Transport Minister Datuk Abdul Rahim Bakri.

He said the move by the airline, which serviced Sabah and Sarawak, would transform the Kota Kinabalu and Kuching international airports as transporation hubs and regional entry point for international destinations.

Abdul Rahim said MASwings’ foray into the growth areas would also propel tourism in the states.

“With the extension of services and business, MASwings will remain committed to provide the best service domestically especially in rural areas.

“This is in line with MASwings’s objective to provide subsidised air service in the interiors of Sabah and Sarawak which are not accessible by road,” he told Bernama yesterday.

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Biodiversity at our doorstep: Brunei's commitment to the Heart of Borneo

By Azaraimy HH

Complementing the BIMP-EAGA vision of turning the sub-regional area into a single-tourism corridor dubbed 'Equator Asia', Brunei has proven its unbending commitment to the Heart of Borneo (HoB) concept.

Currently there exists a proposal for the establishment of a 'Trans-boundary Eco-Tourism' within HoB member countries, which will benefit the tourism sectors of the three nations directly involved - Brunei, Indonesia and Malaysia - with the Sultanate having committed a large portion of its undisturbed forests to the project. The World Wildlife Fund (WWF) is also assisting in the project.

Deputy Director of Forestry Department at the Ministry of Industry and Primary Resources (MIPR), Mahmud Haji Yussof, in his capacity as Interim Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of the Brunei HoB Centre said, "I believe Brunei offers a strong position in eco-tourism potential because it is a country within the BIMP-EAGA sub-region where tourists do not have to travel far to experience rich biodiversity. In Brunei biodiversity is at the doorstep".

The Bulletin interviewed Mahmud Haji Yussof during a forestry briefing presented to a 17-member Chinese delegation that was led by Minister of State Forestry Administration of the People's Republic of China, Jia Zhibang, in which the delegation was informed of Brunei's current forestry status by the Director of Forestry Department, Haji Saidin bin Salleh. Also present at the briefing were the Permanent Secretary at the MIPR, Dayang Hajah Normah Suria Hayati binti PJDSMDSU (Dr) Hj Awang Mohd Jamil Al-Sufri, and other senior level officers.

During the briefing Mahmud Haji Yussof highlighted the importance of the HoB project, which has the potential to prevent hundreds or maybe even thousands of species from facing extinction. Successful rainforest conservation requires joint efforts as forests are inter-connected, he added.

He mentioned there are several projects being undertaken as part of the HoB initiative that require the involvement of the relevant authorities across all the nations involved, such as the continuous study of fauna and flora within protected areas.

He also linked the importance of the overall conservation effort to potential economic benefits, particularly the tourism industry, which will ultimately benefit the Sultanate.

"The forest is not there simply for its timber or other by-products. Today we can apply leverage on the forest itself to grow eco-tourism", which he labeled as being a very promising industry for Brunei. The forests can basically "generate money for us by itself and also benefit the local people as eco-tourism is about the local people", he added.

Environmental and forest protection remains a strong issue in Brunei, where the issue is being strongly supported by the political leadership as he referred to His Majesty the Sultan's 2007 Titah in Sydney, which touched on the HoB initiative.

It is important to note however that external financial support is crucial for the initiative's success and that currently Brunei Shell, HSBC and SCB are private sector businesses that are supporting the initiative.

In conclusion he maintained that the committee will continue to try their best to secure sponsorship from other countries as it also contributes to the global environmental conservation effort as well.

Under a trilateral meeting, a project such as trans-border eco-tourism is being proposed, which will benefit member countries. "What else can we say but Brunei is a city inside a forest," he stated.

Courtesy of Borneo Bulletin
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MASwings eyeing to become household name in Sabah and Sarawak

KUCHING: MASwings aspires to be a household brand for the people of Sabah and Sarawak.

The community airline had held many activities in the past five months to position MASwings as an airline that serves the need of the people in Sabah and Sarawak.

“Being a community airline, I realise the importance of MASwings to the people of Sabah and Sarawak. Therefore, I tell MASwings employees that they really need to perform to serve the people in Sabah and Sarawak,” said the managing director of MASwing Datuk Capt Mohd Nawawi Awang during MAS and MASwings Raya open house at Hilton Kuching Hotel yesterday.

He revealed that 85 per cent of Maswings staff from Sabah and Sarawak. Out of 1,300, some 1,100 employees are from both states.

Capt Mohd Nawawi said he understood the difficulties faced by the people in rural places such as Bario and Ba Kelalan in getting from one place to another.

With MASwings as the lifeline for the people in the interior, he said the community airline looks forward to playing its role in serving the interior communities in Sabah and Sarawak, even with the limited equipment it has — 10 ATR aircrafts and four Twin Otters.

Besides serving the people of Sabah and Sarawak, Capt Mohd Nawawi said MASwings also aspires to expand beyond the shores of Sabah and Sarawak to position itself for the future.

“When I came in to lead the company five months ago, I realised I’m in the privileged position to take the airline into the future. When I came on board in April, my first task was to expand into BIMP-Eaga.

“Initially, our target was to start our operations in July and I thought three months down the road I could start our first operation into BIMP Eaga,” he said.

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Support for MASwings’ Sarawak-Brunei initiative

KUCHING: BIMP-EAGA Malaysia Tourism Council is keen to see MASwings ply the Sarawak-Brunei route because the oil-rich sultanate could serve as another gateway into the state.

Its chairman Datuk Wee Hong Seng said the council would write to the Ministry of Transport to urge it to give MASwings the green light to start this service.

“I do not see any reason for not approving it since MASwings wants to fly the route,” he told reporters after opening the celebration of Pa Sien Kung’s birthday at King’s Centre here on Saturday.

The former president of Sarawak Tourism Federation asserted that any connectivity to the state “is a plus point” for the tourism market.

“If MASwings is willing to fly, why hold it back? It is not difficult for the Ministry of Transport to sort things out if the issue is for MASwings (to only) operate rural air services.

“I do not think it has something to do with the open sky policy. What matters is that over 100 seats can be easily filled if MASwings serves the route.”

Wee said the council supported MASwings to fly not only Kuching-Brunei but also Kuching-Jakarta and Kota Kinabalu-Brunei.

If this materialised, it would certainly enhance connectivity in the BIMP-EAGA region.

Responding to the possibility of Firefly terminating services in Sarawak and Sabah, he said the swapping of shares between Malaysia Airlines (MAS) and AirAsia should not result in a monopoly.

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MASwings plans BIMP-EAGA services from October

KOTA KINABALU: If everything goes to plan, MASwings may start introducing its Kota Kinabalu-Bandar Seri Begawan (Brunei) route and Kuching-Pontianak (Indonesia) services in October.

This move will mark the airline’s foray into international operations, in particular the Brunei-Indonesia-Malaysia-Philippines East Asean Growth Area (BIMP-EAGA) region.

MASwings chairman Tengku Datuk Seri Azmil Zahruddin said the airline was currently awaiting approval from the Transport Ministry.

“The expansion to this region will position MASwings as a truly community airline not only for the people of Sabah and Sarawak, but for the entire community of Borneo and BIMP-EAGA,” he said during the launch of MASwings-Enrich Frequent Flyer partnership programme here today.

MASwings, a fully-owned subsidiary of Malaysia Airlines, currently flies to 22 destinations within Sabah and Sarawak with a total fleet of 10 ATR 72-500 aircraft and four Twin Otter aircraft. It has over 1,300 staff.

Tengku Azmil who is also Malaysia Airlines Managing Director, said the latest move into BIMP-EAGA would transform MASwings into an international player competing with the rest of the other airlines in the same league.

“We are extremely confident of the prospect of our expansion plan to this region with a population close to 60 million and due to the rapid business development there,” he added.

MASwings started in October 2007 with 450 flights per week. Presently, it operates close to 940 flights per week, representing a growth of more than 100 per cent over a three-and-a-half-year period.

“Our current on-time performance is 93.4 per cent, compared to the average on-time performance of 92.9 per cent in 2009 and 93 per cent in 2010.

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Sarawak Wants MASWings To Fly To Selected BIMB-EAGA Destinations

KUCHING -- Sarawak wants the federal government to allow MASWings to fly to selected destinations in Indonesia, the Philippines and Brunei on its Sarawak routes under the BIMP-EAGA air connectivity expansion initiative, state Tourism and Heritage Minister Datuk Amar Abang Johari Tun Openg said.

He was optimistic that the positive trend in tourist arrivals would continue this year with improved connectivity coupled with joint strategic marketing and promotional plans.

Following the promotional tourism rebranding as "Equator Asia" the BIMP-EAGA Joint Tourism Development (JTD) Cluster successfully launched an "Equator Asia" website, which hyper-links its tourism packages under its logo as part of the strategic initiatives being taken, he said in his winding-up speech at the state legislative assembly sitting here.

He said the BIMP-EAGA Tourism Centre for Development also successfully supported and strengthened sub-regional cooperation in tourism development by building knowledge and information through joint tourism research activites.

The ministry would also focus on chartered operations during peak demand in selected markets like North Asia and Western Europe besides engaging with other carriers on the possibility of opening up new routes from Europe, Australia and New Zealand, he said.

Abang Johari said the total visitor arrivals to Sarawak had shown a positive growth of 15.6 per cent recording 1,158,994 arrivals in the first four months of this year, including 62.3 per cent foreigners and 37.7 per cent domestic tourists.

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Promoting BIMP-EAGA tourism through buses

KUCHING: The tourism authorities in Sabah/Sarawak, Indonesia and Brunei are looking at giving incentives to three bus companies, namely Damri, Bus Asia and SJS for their roles in helping to boost the tourism industry in this region.

Tourism and Heritage Ministry permanent secretary Datu Ik Pahon Joyik said that the three bus companies have been providing direct fleets from Pontianak to Brunei and Kota Kinabalu, Sabah and they would be given some incentives as recognition for their contribution.

“We realise that the bus companies play a very important role in enabling the mobility of people from Indonesia, Sabah/Sarawak and Brunei to visit one another. So as recognition for their effort, we are looking into how to give incentives to them.

“Among the areas we are looking at now is how the governments of the three countries can reduce the bureaucracies imposed on the buses when crossing the border. One of them is by displaying the BIMP-EAGA tourism logo on the buses,” said Pahon.

He explained that the incentives for express buses providing direct fleets from Pontianak to Brunei and Kota Kinabalu were part of the proposed Borneo Tour Package initiated by the three countries.

“The Borneo Tour Package is a tourism network to encourage the mobility of people from Indonesia, Sabah/Sarawak and Brunei to visit one another. The proposal had been discussed during our first meeting in Kota Kinabalu last month and on July 4 we are going to have a follow-up meeting in Brunei.

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BIMP-EAGA hailed as most mega diverse region in the world

KOTA KINABALU: The Brunei, Indonesia, Malaysia and Phillipines-East Asean Growth Area (BIMP-EAGA) has been hailed as the most mega diverse region in the world.

In a statement yesterday, the Mindanao Development Authority (MinDA) said the ministers responsible for the BIMP-EAGA’s tropical rainforests and marine resources gave this recognition at the one-day Conference on the Heart of Borneo and Coral Reefs in Temburong, Brunei Tuesday.

In a joint statement, the ministers of the four-member countries said the two ecosystems of forests and coral reefs were interconnected and good strategies and plans were currently being implemented including maintaining the ecological corridors joining the terrestrial and marine biodiversity.

“The ministers agreed that their respective national action plans would form the basis for the development and conservation of the two ecosystems and recognised the importance of collaboration efforts among member countries in the areas of common interest such as in eco-tourism and research and development,” it said.

Meanwhile, Secretary Luwalhati R. Antonino, MinDA Chair and Philippine Signing Minister for BIMP-EAGA, said the role of the business entities, non-governmental organisations (NGOs) and local government units in the conservation of the seas, oceans, forests, and species in the coral triangle should not be forgotten.

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BIMP-EAGA Tourism Initiative To Capitalise On Borneo's WW2-Related Events

KUCHING -- A regional tourism initiative spearheaded by the Brunei, Indonesia, Malaysia and Philippines-East Asean Economic Growth Area (BIMP-EAGA) is expected to attract more tourists to Sarawak, Sabah and Labuan, especially for World War Two (WW2) commemorative events, beginning this year.

Sarawak Tourism and Heritage Ministry permanent secretary Datuk Ik Pahon said today the relevant agencies from the two states and Labuan would discuss such a collaboration next month to give tourists from Australia, New Zealand and the United Kingdom more choice to attend WW2-related events through the Borneo Heritage Trail.

"It will be a Borneo circuit and I am confident that by this November, more friends from outside Sarawak whose parents may have also been involved and took part in the fighting in WW2, will be able to stay here longer and contribute towards the enrichment of our shared historical heritage," he said when opening the Wartime Heritage Exhibition 2011 at the Sarawak Arts Museum, here.

He said ongoing tourism promotions on wartime-related events and historical heritage sites, including the Heroes Monument in Kuching, Sandakan Memorial Park and Labuan War Cemetery, were fragmented.

Another site was the former prisoners-of-war campsite at the Batu Lintang College here, which houses a mini museum, and where overseas visitors, among them Australian groups, came to see the place where their forefathers were held captive during the war, he said.

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BIMP-EAGA region most 'mega diverse' in the world

KUCHING: The BIMP-EAGA region has been recognised as the most ‘mega diverse’ sub-region in the world due to its rich biodiversity, especially its tropical rainforests and coral reef.

BIMP-EAGA stands for Brunei, Indonesia, Malaysia and Phillipines-East Asia Growth Area.

The recognition was given by the ministers responsible for the region at the BIMP-EAGA Ministerial Conference on the Heart of Borneo and Coral Reefs in Temburong, Brunei yesterday.

The ministers representing Malaysia were Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department Tan Sri Nor Mohamed Yakcop, Natural Resources and Environment Minister Dato Sri Douglas Uggah and Science, Technology and Innovation Minister Datuk Dr Maximus Ongkili.

Representing Brunei were Second Minister of Foreign Affairs and Trade Pehin Dato Lim Jock Seng and Industry and Primary Resources Minister Pehin Dato Yahya.

Indonesia was represented by Zulkifli Hassan while Philippines by Mindanao Development Authority chairman Luwalhati Antonino.

“The ministers recognised that the two ecosystems of forests and coral reefs are interconnected and noted that good strategies and plans are currently being implemented including maintaining the ecological corridors joining the terrestrial and marine biodiversity.

“The ministers agreed that their respective national action plans would form
the basis for the development and conservation of the two ecosystems and recognised the importance of collaboration efforts among member countries in the areas of common interest such as in eco-tourism and research and development.

“This effort would complement each other and create synergy that would significantly contribute to the BIMP-EAGA rich biodiversity.

“In this regard, the ministers recognised the BIMP-EAGA region as the most mega diverse sub-region in the world,” said the ministers in a joint statement yesterday.

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MASwings plans flights into BIMP-EAGA

Kota Kinabalu: MASwings is looking into increasing its flight frequency to areas increasingly visited by tourists.

Its Managing Director Dato' Mohd Salleh Ahmad Tabrani on Wednesday said areas such as the State Capital, Sandakan, Labuan, Tawau, Kuching, Miri and Bintulu are hosting more and more tourists, reflecting an increasing demand for more flights.

"Up to now we have about 950 flights weekly to cater to Sabah and Sarawak, for about 95,000 passengers," he said.

He said since there is a growing demand, they would look into increasing flights soon and increase the number of aircraft several years after.

"The increase is due to factors such as increasing population in this two states, increasing number of tourists domestically and internationally and also from promotional air fares that are available on and off if one books online," he said during a Hari Raya open house organised by MAS and MASwings.

Salleh also said MASwings is exploring the possibility of operating into the Brunei-Indonesia-Malaysia-Philippines East Asean Growth Area (BIMP-EAGA).

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BIMP-EAGA wants to boost tourism

TOURISM is one of the key talking points of the on-going Brunei, Indonesia, Malaysia and the Philippines-East Asean Growth Area (BIMP-EAGA) Conference.

The Sarawak Government, the host this time, is urging for better government-to-government ties to collectively identify key problem areas.

At a gala dinner in Kuching on Thursday, Chief Minister Tan Sri Abdul Taib Mahmud said marketing and promotional strategies must be improved.

“The sub-region needs to provide good transport infrastructure and facilities,” Taib said in the text of his speech, which was read out by his deputy Tan Sri Alfred Jabu Numpang.

“More importantly, we need to improve accessibility, especially air linkages between member countries. As for Sarawak, I urge private sector players to jointly develop and promote innovative packages, which will give mutual benefits to member countries.”

Air-linkages has been one of the critical areas of Sarawak’s tourism sector.

The State Government has many times made known its hope for airlines to make Kuching International Airport (KIA), the second most active airport in Sarawak and Sabah, after Kota Kinabalu International Airport, an aviation hub.

Meanwhile, KIA also faces stiff competition from Brunei, which recently unveiled a multi-million transformation programme with the aid of Singapore’s Changi Airport Group.

Taib said good linkages must come with good travel packages and attractive destination products.

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