Bougainville Experience Tourism (BET), based out of Arawa in the Autonomous Region of Bougainville (AROB), also attended the Melanesian Arts Culture Festival 2023 (MACFEST 23) in Port Vila in Vanuatu, to showcase what Bougainville has to offer for tourists.
Owner and Manager of BET, Mr. Zhon Bosco Miriona, was thrilled to be part of the PNG contingent to attend the MACFEST 23.
This is the second time that Mr. Miriona attended the MACFEST. Mr. Miriona explained that events like the MACFEST were important for Papua New Guinean tour operators like himself, as it gave him the opportunity to showcase and market his tourism products to a market that is largely unaware of Papua New Guinea (PNG).
“My goal in attending the MACFEST 23 is to capture international travel agents and encourage more cooperation for business, as well as to connect with my tourism counterparts in Vanuatu, via the Vanuatu Tourism Office.”
He explained that people in PNG don’t have an attitude that is geared towards tourism, compared to other Pacific Island Countries.
“Because we have other means of earning an income, through cash crops and other natural resources, our people don’t really have an attitude to encourage the growth of tourism in the country.”
Mr. Miriona said this situation needs to change, as there is so much potential for tourism for PNG.
Representing his tour company, Mr. Miriona was part of a 30-man contingent that travelled to Vanuatu to participate in the two-week MACFEST 23.
The MACFEST is a biennial event that brings together artists, performers and cultural practitioners from across the Pacific Region to promote, preserve traditional arts & culture while simultaneously providing a platform for contemporary expression of Melanesian Identity.