Thailand: A Handful of Projects, a Mind Full of Ideas!

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Since the beginning of the pandemic, TCEB has acted quickly to deliver important measures, and this has turned out to be a determining factor in supporting the local event industry.
9th Nov, 2021
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Thailand did not stand still during the pandemic. The whole community embraced the setback and chose to focus on getting ready for the future. Facilitating success through education and connecting global opportunities remain key drivers for the local CVB.

Since the beginning of the pandemic, Thailand Convention & Exhibition Bureau (TCEB) has acted quickly to develop important measures, and this has turned out to be a determining factor in supporting the local event industry. During the first recovery steps, TCEB launched the MICE COVID Info Centre, and established funds to activate domestic MICE activities and to support venues in improving their hygiene and security. In response to the pandemic through the qualification and diversification of its products, the Virtual Meeting Space was also created to support virtual and hybrid events. “We have also explored new opportunities for collaboration, both within Thailand and internationally. For instance, we are working closely with Convention Bureaux in Asia to develop opportunities to revitalise regional business through the Asia Convention Alliance,” says the senior vice president, Nichapa Yoswee (right side).

But that doesn’t stop there: TCEB has established a Convention Task Force Committee, bringing together ICCA Thailand members and industry partners to share market insights and best practices suitable to a preferred convention destination in Asia. As another initiative, the Thailand tourism sector, including TCEB, joined forces and launched the Amazing Thailand Safety and Health Administration that supported hotels, venues and service providers to comply with sanitation requirements to prevent the spread of COVID-19. In addition, TCEB teamed up with 16 partners and a set of public and private entities to create the memorandum of understanding “Unlock MICE Cities with High Standard of Safety”, to promote safe meetings, exhibitions and events in Thai cities. Through this memorandum, “we will put into practice our MICE Venue Standards and new health protocols to create a safety standard for all events,” adds Yoswee. “In collaboration with the Department of Disease Control and the MICE Academic Cluster, we have also developed training courses to build event agencies and other MICE suppliers, with knowledge of public health monitoring, control and evaluation standards.” These courses allowed for 33 DMCs and 90 employees to safely attend foreign businessmen under a special government regime. Furthermore, TCEB is organising road shows across various cities to educate further on COVID-19 prevention, and support local entrepreneurs in each of these destinations.


Bangkok cityscape, business district

Regarding incentives, TCEB has extended a support scheme for associations and PCOs planning to meet in Thailand. The Convene Plus is a newly curated convention programme that aims to serve ever- changing demands and formats of global conventions, whilst implementing a dynamic service portfolio as well as simpli ed criteria with rede ned value propositions. According to Yoswee, “TCEB’s focus has always been about people. From people’s wellbeing to ensuring that the Thai business events industry flourish for generations to come.” Looking forward to the economic recovery, they are putting together another strategic campaign that positions TCEB as a natural partner for the associations. The Regenerating Legacies Recovery Roadmap introduces three pillars that will define their actions, and aligns a development strategy as a destination with recovery goals in mind. As the global community continues to manage restrictions and the altering COVID-19 strains brought on by the pandemic, “the rst step of our three-year roadmap aims to engage impactful conversations with partners and customers,” explains Yoswee. “A united voice fuelled by diverse and inclusive perspective will help the industry to enhance the future. We want to first focus on the journey and not worrying about the outcome until people feel safe travelling again.”

 

For much of 2020, domestic events took place normally in Thailand which allowed venues to implement new practices for safe events. TCEB launched the Thailand, a Safer Place for Meetings campaign to encourage and attract domestic meetings which resulted in 1,049 events with 62,555 participants. “Our convention centres, hotels, venues and event providers used this time to update health measures, obtain safety certifications, invest in the upgrading of facilities and upskill staff; all of this to respond to the changing needs of our clients.” TCEB’s MICE Capabilities Development Department has partnered with two global associations (MPI and PCMA) to expand career opportunities for Thai MICE operators, having now 23 certified event designers and 40 digital event strategists. In particular, the partnership with PCMA provided numerous opportunities to learn from different case studies around the world. The digital transformation started right away with Thailand Redefine Your Business Event in late 2018, having culminated with the aforementioned Virtual Meeting Space − a project that supported Thai MICE entrepreneurs in the retraining of their workforce. “In February of this year, we’ve debuted our first Thailand Virtual MICE Expo, which generated over 580 business-matching sessions, giving international MICE buyers and stakeholders a timely update on the Thailand market,” tells Yoswee.

TCEB has been championing sustainability in the MICE industry for nearly 10 years already. Their MICE Development Department has rolled out various awareness activities, crafted sustainable events basic guidelines and event management standards to provide a responsible framework for MICE entrepreneurs across the industry value chain. “Our duty as global citizens is to leave a healthy legacy for future generations. This notion is evidenced in our Convene Plus support scheme whereby Thailand’s three key transformational impacts – economic, social and environmental – will remain the key-criteria.” For five decades, the value of business events in creating jobs has been recognised. However, they consider that this human connectivity cannot be disrupted to rear more business transactions and industry-wide evolution. "We think that a time like this offers us an opportunity to engage with underexplored industries and leverage our nation’s excellent intellectual capital. The collaborative effort of a wide range of target sectors will ultimately increase Thailand’s win rate from a sustainable point of view”, concludes Yoswee.

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