Datu Aloysius J Dris
KUCHING (June 19): Sarawak Tourism Board (STB) founding chief executive officer Datu Aloysius J Dris lauded the efforts by the Ministry of Tourism, Arts and Culture alongside private sectors in revitalising this year’s virtual Rainforest World Music Festival (RWMF).
Despite the festival’s cancellation last year due to the Covid-19 pandemic, he said he was pleased to see the organisers have put together an impressive showcase of what the festival entails.
“They have come in style and vigour to reclaim the popularity of the festival which has been running for the past 23 years,” he said.
Dris, who is also the current chief executive of the Sarawak Unity Foundation (YPS) said that the festival has what it takes to bounce back after being on hiatus.
As one of the pioneers of the festival, he was involved in the effort to secure and execute the internationally acclaimed festival through the joint efforts of the Ministry of Tourism Sarawak, the Sarawak Tourism Board and the private sector.
“The festival will not be what it is without the support of both the Ministry as well as the team at the Sarawak Tourism Board who have been tasked to organize and run the festival behind the scenes from the very beginning,” he said.
Stating that the festival was the first of its kind in Sarawak at the time, he did not expect the festival to grow into popularity as quickly as it did.
“It was not quite our expectation to find the RWMF growing into a yearly festival with fans and supporters not only locally but all over the world. After all, we started with only 300 people attending the festival in the first year. With the revival of the festival through this virtual effort, I believe that the festival can continue to evolve with the times.”
“I invite all of you to tune in to the final show tonight especially if you have not seen the first two. The virtual experience has definitely captured the essence of the festival and has brought back a lot of memories for me,” he said.
The Rainforest World Music Festival (RWMF) Virtual Experience can be viewed on rwmf.net from 6pm to 7.30pm as well as on TVS and Shopee Live.