Jakarta. The Tourism Ministry recently launched the MICE.id platform in partnership with the Indonesian Hotel and Restaurant Association (PHRI) and tech company GoVirtual. 

As the name suggests, the platform is expected to support the tourism sub-sector of meeting, incentive, convention, and exhibition (MICE) industry.

According to Tourism Minister Sandiaga Uno, MICE.id is a platform that provides information regarding the MICE industry in Indonesia.

“This is set to expedite the coordination process and collaboration between MICE stakeholders, be it those at home and abroad,” Sandiaga was quoted as saying in a recent press statement.

Masruroh, an expert staff at the Tourism Ministry, said MICE.id has a pre-scheduled appointment (PSA) feature to support B2B trade show events. Masruroh said: “Organizers of trade show exhibitions in Indonesia can use MICE.id for free if they ever need to have a B2B platform that comes equipped with a PSA.”

PHRI chairman Haryadi BS Sukamdani welcomed the partnership with the Tourism Ministry and GoVirtual. According to Haryadi, PHRI has over 3,000 hotel members spread across the archipelago. This partnership with the tourism ministry sees PHRI sharing its data related to its members’ facilities. The data includes the type of rooms and their availability, among others.

“We can work with bookingina.com as a marketplace platform to book meeting rooms, and this is integrated with the LKPP [National Public Procurement Agency]. So the Tourism Ministry will have better data. Our data is live. So we can get data on the occupancy of the meeting rooms,” Hariyadi said.

According to GoVirtual director Bobby Chen, the partnership includes sharing visual data on hotels and venues, and other supporting features, while also promoting MICE.id to GoVirtual partners.

"We are helping to strengthen MICE.id's database through a virtual tour equipped with a multilingual Virtual AI Assistant. Usually, when venues provide data to their clients, it is only in the form of photos, videos, or e-brochures sent manually via email or WhatsApp. Therefore, with a virtual tour that includes all facilities such as room types, meeting room parking areas, outdoor areas, and also access around the venue, it will make it easier for clients to search and find the right venue," Bobby said.