DATE: 27 July 2021, Tuesday
TIME: 12:00pm – 1:30pm (GMT+8 / KL Time)
VENUE: Online Webinar via Zoom
TOPIC: ASEAN Tourism Webinar: Outlook and Pathways to Recovery
OVERVIEW
ASEAN Tourism Webinar is CARI’s tourism and hospitality focused event featuring influential policy-makers in a highly-interactive 90-minute session, addressing current and emerging trends and issues faced by the industry and regional governments in recovering from the global pandemic.
The COVID-19 pandemic continues to cause severe loss of lives and ravage world economies across the globe especially the tourism industry. In 2020, the tourism sector had seen the international tourist arrivals plummet 80.5% and suffered the loss of 75.8% tourism receipts. Prior to the pandemic, ASEAN tourism industry contributed 14.3% of the region’s GDP and 13.7% of total employment in the region.
In November 2020, ASEAN endorsed the ASEAN Comprehensive Recovery Framework (ACRF) comprising five broad strategies serving as the consolidated exit strategy from the COVID-19 crisis, with the tourism industry identified as one of the hardest hit sectors that needs accelerated sectoral recovery and safeguarding of employment. The Chair of ASEAN, Brunei too has prioritised the recovery of this sector as of the key Priority Economic Deliverables (PEDs) in 2021.
ASEAN tourism ministers who met at the 24th Meeting of ASEAN Tourism Ministers in February this year highlighted the acute need to revive the tourism industry. The ministers acknowledged the importance of expediting the operationalisation of the ASEAN Travel Corridor Arrangement Framework (ATCAF) as identified in the ACRF and supported a range of other initiatives such as digital tourism and cruise tourism to promote ASEAN as a single tourism destination.
With some ASEAN member states such as Indonesia and Thailand experimenting the reopening of its doors to international tourists recently, the ‘ASEAN Tourism Webinar 2021: Outlook and Pathways to Recovery’ hosted by CARI in collaboration with ASEAN Business Advisory Council and ASEAN Business Club, will dive deeper on the recovery of the tourism sector in ASEAN, the hotel and aviation industries’ perspectives, focusing on the most viable short-term and medium term pathways that can help the industry regain its footing in tandem with existing regional work plans.
FEATURED SPEAKERS
1. H.E. Sandiaga Uno Minister of Tourism and Creative Economy, Indonesia
2. Hon. Yanty Rahman Chair, ASEAN Business Advisory Council 2021
3. H.E. Satvinder Singh Deputy Secretary-General, ASEAN Economic Community
MODERATOR
Tan Sri Dr. Munir MajidChairman of CARI ASEAN Research and Advocacy Chairman of ASEAN Business Advisory Council, Malaysia President of ASEAN Business Club
PANEL SPEAKERS
1. Mr. Riad AsmatChief Executive Officer, AirAsia Malaysia
2. Mr. William HeineckeFounder & Chairman of Minor International PLC Member of ASEAN Business Club
HOST
Ms. Jukhee HongExecutive Director of CARI ASEAN Research and Advocacy