Experts have called for enhancement of the MICE industry's competitiveness by developing new world-class events and creating year-round activities, as well as producing a 10-year strategic plan to develop the sector in the long term.
The Thailand Management Association, the Board of Trade of Thailand and the Thai Institute of Directors Association yesterday held a seminar entitled "Thailand's Competitiveness in the MICE Industry", with a view to compiling proactive strategies and measures to enhance the country's potential in the meetings, incentives, conventions and exhibitions sector.
Roy Stone, senior adviser at Accor Asia-Pacific, said Thailand should have a 10-year strategic plan to develop the MICE industry over the long term.
However, the country may face a difficult challenge as its current prospects have been dented by the political chaos and unrest in the first half of the year, he said.
He said Singapore was the best case study for improving a city's competitiveness through the MICE segment. The city-state has added many events to attract visitors, including MICE events.
"Singapore has become a world-class city in the 21th century. It just followed a vision called 'Singapore: the Exchange Capital of the World', which has been helping to draw a lot of business into the island," he added.
The latest two developments in Singapore are the Marina Bay Sands and Resort World Sentosa, which are expected to attract large numbers of international visitors.
The key success factors for Singapore are the good cooperation between the private and public sectors, and its MICE development plan, said Stone.
Akapol Sorasuchart, president of the Thailand Convention and Exhibition Bureau, said his agency had introduced a MICE campaign called "Believe in Thailand" in overseas markets in order to restore confidence in the Kingdom in the post-political-crisis era.
He said the government was also encouraging domestic MICE business by putting MICE on the national agenda. This means organisations can join a scheme that offers more incentives and privileges to help operators improve their cash flow.
Stone told the seminar that many local events had developed into world-class events. He cited the Cannes Film Festival, which is a global premium event that brings a large amount of business to the French city. He also mentioned the Olympic Games as a global event that brings millions of visitors into the host city.
Seri Wangpaichit, dean of the Faculty of Tourism and Hospitality Industry, Rangsit University, said the domestic MICE campaign would increase business for the country. The scheme will also generate revenue for communities, as local people can sell their products.
He said Thailand had been focusing chiefly on the number of international arrivals for the past 30 years, but it was now time to pay more attention to what MICE could provide by way of economic and other benefits.
"However, to achieve this, the sector needs financial support from the government," said Seri.
In order to develop MICE business, Nitinai Sirismatthakarn, senior executive vice president for business development and marketing at Airports of Thailand, said the country needed better physical infrastructure and venues.
Moreover, the achievements of the MICE industry are dependent on close cooperation among key players and MICE drivers such as the Thailand Convention and Exhibition Bureau, the Tourism Authority of Thailand and hotel operators.
Nitinai said most neighbouring countries were still concerned about Thailand's internal unrest.
"People less than 10 years old in neighbouring countries don't know the phrase 'Thailand: the Land of Smile', and [more recent memories] are a key threat factor the country," he added.
He urged the private sector and the government to work together more in order to ensure the Kingdom's MICE development in the long term.
He said the Thai tourism sector was currently undergoing a really tough period and the price-cutting practice of many luxury hotels was not good for the country.
"If we have more MICE business, it should help tourism as a whole,"he said, pointing to the fact that MICE travellers usually spend more than general tourists.
Richard Chapman, general manager of the Sheraton Grande Sukhumvit Hotel, said Thailand, and Bangkok in particular, should create world-class events in order to draw visitors from around the globe.
He said the Kingdom already possessed great products like attractions, food and culture, but the authorities needed to outline a long-term, 10-year plan and ensure that the private sector and the government worked together to develop the MICE sector.
"Singapore is a good example of MICE development in the past 10 years," he said, adding that it was time to create a brand image for Bangkok so that the city could attract travellers from around the world.