On May 12, the 10th Anak Sarawak Awards will honour “Passion Inspires Legacies.”

The Premier of Sarawak, The Right Honourable Datuk Patinggi Tan Sri Dr Abang Haji Abdul Rahman Zohari bin Tun Datuk Abang Haji Openg, will be the guest of honour at the 10th Anak Sarawak Awards event on 12 May 2023 at Imperial Hotel Kuching.

The prestigious event by Business Events Sarawak (BESarawak) will carry the theme ‘Passion Inspires Legacies’ to honour exceptional individuals and organisations whose passion, commitment and forward-thinking approaches are leading Sarawak into its strongest era of business events.  Besides aligning with Sarawak’s advocacy of business events legacies, the theme is a celebration of the industry’s strong post-pandemic revival.

One of the highlights of this year’s Anak Sarawak Awards is the Sarawak Legacy Award. It is the newest category to acknowledge conventions that focus on environmental, social and governance (ESG) agendas and prioritise legacy as its long-term result.

Another major highlight to look forward to is the launching of Malaysia’s first-ever Business Events Sarawak Legacy (BESLegacy) Ambassador Programme, a community of influential business events and legacy advocates to amplify the destination’s purpose of developing social and economic transformation through business event legacies. The first group of ambassadors will be revealed during the launch.

“Business events are crucial to executing the Post Covid-19 Development Strategy and turning Sarawak into a thriving destination that enjoys economic prosperity, social inclusion and environmental sustainability by 2030,” expressed The Right Honourable Datuk Patinggi Tan Sri Dr Abang Haji Abdul Rahman Zohari bin Tun Datuk Abang Haji Openg. “With our focus on business events legacy impacts, the sector is very much capable of producing economic legacies that support our intended growth rate of 8% per annum and social legacies that reduce urban and rural development gaps.”

“It has been 5 years since we last hosted Anak Sarawak Awards due to the pandemic, so we are very excited to celebrate the achievements of the business events community,” said The Honourable Dato Sri Abdul Karim Rahman Hamzah, Sarawak’s Minister of Tourism, Creative Industry and Performing Arts. “The resilience, creativity and innovation shown by the industry in the face of unprecedented challenges and opportunities brought over 2 million visitor arrivals and over MYR3.87 million in tourism receipts in 2022.  This year, we are targeting 3 million visitors and MYR7.25 billion in tourism receipts and believe that business events will contribute to a good portion of the arrivals.”

“Passion Inspires Legacies is a theme that is very close to our hearts,” said BESarawak’s Chairman, Dato Sri Abang Haji Abdul Karim Bin Tun Datuk Abang Haji Openg. “Passion is the fuel that drives us to pursue our goals, persevere through adversities and make a lasting impact. In business events, passion often leads to innovation and progress which is at the centre of what we do. We hope that this year’s awards  will inspire more in the sector to strive for excellence, and more outside of the sector to consider using business events as a legacy tool.”

This year’s judging committee comprised members from international associations, Professional Convention Management Association (PCMA) and International Congress and Convention Association (ICCA); Malaysian Association of Tour and Travel Agents (MATTA); Sarawak Tourism Federation (STF), and Malaysian Association Of Convention & Exhibition Organisers & Suppliers (MACEOS). Judges have carefully selected the top 3 nominees for each category and they are:

Young Leader Award

• Hii Mei Cheing — Borneo Plux Sdn. Bhd.
• Chai Lee Kee — Spiral Events Management Sdn. Bhd.
• Dayang Fatin Nurhazziqah — Koperasi Pro Belia Inovasi

Journalism Award – Print/Online

• Vicky Koffa — Boardroom Global
• Priscilla Tawie Anak Sulok — New Sarawak Tribune
• Puvaneswary S. Selvadurai — TTG Association

Journalism Award – Broadcasting

• Malaysian National News Agency (BERNAMA)
• TVS (Sarawak Media Group)

Convention of Excellence Award

• 8th International Forum on Industrial Bioprocessing 2019

— Curtin University Malaysia

• BRITMA – Malaysia International Congress on Tropical Medicine 2019

— SEGI University (Sibu Clinical Campus)

• 13th International Conference on Child and Adolescent Psychopathology 2018

— University of Roehampton London

Corporate Meetings and Incentive Excellence Award

• Spiral Eventz Management Sdn. Bhd.
• Cat City Holidays Sdn. Bhd.
• Golden Point Leisure and MICE Holiday Sdn. Bhd.

Meeting Venue of Excellence

• Borneo Convention Centre Kuching
• The Waterfront Hotel
• Imperial Hotel Kuching

Products and Services of Excellence

• CPH Travel Agencies Sdn. Bhd. (Sarawak)
• E.E.M Event and Exhibition Management Sdn. Bhd.
• Deckworks Events and Entertainment

Outstanding Achievement Award

• Dr. Mohd Raili bin Suhaili — SEGI University (Sibu Clinical Campus)
• Datu Dr. Lulie anak Joshua Melling — Sarawak Tropical Peat Research Institute (TROPI)
• Goh Ah Seng — Hoi Tin Lau Restaurant

Sarawak Legacy Award

• AsiaFlux 2022

— Sarawak Tropical Peat Research Institute (TROPI)

• 1st International Conference on Education in the Digital Ecosystem 2019

— Universiti Teknologi MARA, Samarahan Campus, Sarawak Branch

• Better Air Quality Conference 2018

— Universiti Malaysia Terengganu (UMT)

Anak Sarawak Awards nominees and winners will be announced on the event night. For further information on the 10th Anak Sarawak Awards, please contact Dylan Redas Noel via email at drnoel@sarawakcb.com or mobile at +60138106609. Visit https://businesseventssarawak.com/award-and-education/tribe-honour/ for the award categories.