KUCHING: Regional cooperation under the Brunei Darussalam-Indonesia-Malaysia-Philippines East ASEAN Growth Area (BIMP-EAGA) needs to be strengthened through the establishment of regional offices in each country involved to ensure the implementation of the development and economic agenda can be carried out more effectively.

Sarawak Minister for Tourism, Creative Industry and Performing Arts Dato Sri Abdul Karim Rahman Hamzah said that this measure would be able to increase the effectiveness of the implementation of the BIMP-EAGA initiative that had been established since 1994.

According to him, BIMP-EAGA could examine the success of the Singapore Sarawak Trade and Tourism Office (STATOS) model which has succeeded in strengthening Sarawak's trade and tourism relations with foreign countries.

“That is why I feel that BIMP-EAGA also needs to see and study how STATOS develops from time to time. If there is no regional office from 1994 till now, plans to establish a regional office in Davao City and other areas could be considered.

"STATOS is growing fast, and rapidly achieving success as well,” he said in a press conference after the Opening Ceremony of BIMP-EAGA Tourism Exchange (BETX) 2026 held at a leading hotel here on Wednesday.

He added that the positive development achieved by STATOS shows that the approach is able to accelerate Sarawak's trade, investment and tourism promotion efforts abroad.

In the meantime, Dato Sri Abdul Karim said that Sarawak will also host the 22nd BIMP-EAGA Tourism Cluster Meeting which will take place on 24 and 25 June where it will serve as an important platform to discuss various strategic priorities and joint initiatives to increase the competitiveness of regional tourism.

According to him, among the main issues to be discussed is coordination of strategic priorities and joint initiatives aimed at increasing the competitiveness of regional tourism, strengthening network relationships, promoting sustainable tourism development, implementing joint programmes and accelerating digital transformation in the tourism sector in the BIMP-EAGA region.

"As I mentioned earlier, BIMP-EAGA was established in 1994, but there are still many things that need to be done because as the minister responsible for the tourism sector in Sarawak, I would like to see more achievements.

"This is because we are neighbours and it is best to see developing tourism and trade among our own neighbours,” he explained.

He explained that neighbouring countries and regions have strong potential to support each other in the tourism and trade sectors, as can be seen through successful economic cooperation in Europe and East Asia.

He added that the BIMP-EAGA region which has more than 450 million inhabitants offers a large market and has the potential to be the main driver of the growth of the tourism sector without over-reliance on foreign markets. -UKASnews

Prepared By: Ahmad Daniel Faiz
Translator: Nerissa Sia