At the ASEAN Tourism Forum 2017 (ATF 2017), held from 16-20 January 2017 in Singapore, all 10 ASEAN tourism ministers unanimously voted for Thailand, through the Thailand Convention and Exhibition Bureau (TCEB), to lead the development of the ASEAN MICE Venue Standard (AMVS), as a result of the nationwide success of the Thailand MICE Venue Standard. 

Mr Nopparat Maythaveekulchai, President of TCEB said that “TCEB initiated the Thailand MICE Venue Standard (TMVS) in 2013 to develop Thailand’s meetings and exhibitions venues, helping them to meet internationally recognized standards. Venues are a key deciding factor for event organizers hosting major international MICE events. Today, there are a total of 142 MICE businesses operating 341 certified meeting rooms ranging from convention centers, to hotels and resorts, to other organizations that have meeting facilities such as city halls, museums, associations, and institutes. We have rolled out the TMVS in 5 MICE Cities (Bangkok, Pattaya, Phuket, Chiang Mai, and Khon Kaen), as well as Had Yai, and put in place a working plan to cover other high potential cities in the clusters in line with Government policy.”

To leverage the Thailand MICE Venue Standard (TMVS) to be used as a model for the ASEAN MICE Venue Standard (AMVS), Thailand previously proposed to the National Tourism Organizations (NTOs) to develop such a standard for the ASEAN region, thanks to the Kingdom’s success in the development of the TMVS. Thailand was then chosen as the Lead Coordinator to develop the AMVS, after which the country hosted four special meetings for ASEAN member countries to provide a platform for further discussion of the ASEAN MICE Venue Standard developed specifically for this region, using the Thailand MICE Venue Standard as a model.

Thailand will play host to the forthcoming 1st ASEAN MICE Venue Standard Auditor Training, from 15-18 March 2017, to provide an opportunity for all member countries to learn more about the venue standard and how to assess them. Moreover, Thailand will be the host country for the ASEAN Tourism Forum 2018 (ATF 2018) – scheduled to be held in Chiang Mai, at which the ASEAN MICE Venue Standard certification ceremony for all certified MICE operators from 10 ASEAN member countries will take place.