'Family' feeds on eco-tourism

'Family' feeds on eco-tourism


Rainforest trek: Tourists and representatives from The Brunei Tourism Board take snapshots on the suspension bridge at the Ulu Temburong National Park. Eco-tourism is taking root in the country, with more and more tourists looking for newer tour packages. Picture: BT file photoSobrina Rosli
BANDAR SERI BEGAWAN



Saturday, June 7, 2008


PASSION for Brunei's green jewels is what has kept Mona FloraFauna Tours Enterprise up and running, struggling to sustain what it has begun without forgetting the value of protecting the nation's natural and valued blessings.

Mona FloraFauna Tours Enterprise, one of Brunei's very own inbound tour operators, has been offering eco-tourism services and packages for the last six years. It was granted a licence to operate in 2002 after convincing the Brunei Tourism Board of its capabilities to venture into a different breed of tourism.

"When I was given the licence to operate as an inbound tour operator I was so happy. We started with zero capital, (with) just knowledge to start with," says managing director Muhd Daud Abdullah, also known as 'Jungle Dave'.

The enterprise' priority from the start, he says, was to involve villages in its growth.

"Each village has its own skills and experiences that are valuable to our tourism plans. Even until today we are still discovering new things about Brunei," he says.

A case in point, he says, is the development in Kampung Supon of the Tutong district with Muslim Iban senior citizens at the Kebubuk Longhouse.

"Their skills are just amazing. I stayed with them to learn and experience their lifestyle" while engaging residents in an effort to identify tourist hotspots within the village, including a gigantic tree.

"They showed me the coompasia tree with a buttress root two storeys high, about 40 metres," he says.

"I asked what would happen if anyone wanted to cut down that tree. I found out that the villagers would do anything to protect that tree. They would die with the tree. I said wow! These are the people I want to work with," he adds.

Within the village he also identified a forest area with more than 30 species of Borneo orchids.

"It is near to impossible to find 30 species of orchids in one area, but Brunei has that untouched."

He credits the company's growth to his passion and the interest of his staff in nature preservation. He values and treats staff like family members.

"For my family members here when I hired them, honestly, they had no interest (in the venture) at all. Bruneians have wrong perceptions where they do not want to work in the private sector," he says.

"But it all depends on individual companies, on how they train and treat the staff."

He trains his staff through practical mechanisms from being in the forest to experience and learn to identify different plants and trees.

"They follow me into the jungle and (I) teach them about various herbs, plants and animals. The things they learn is something new to them, it is not like in television, it's real," he says.

At the moment the enterprise has 13 guides, with another 32 community guides hired at the villages.

"Most of the community guides are unemployed youths from the villages, (we provide) training for them," he says.

Muhd Daud says his enterprise still has a long way to go despite its established presence.

"We started with zero financial back up. We work hard where most of our money is being used for investments into facilities and salaries. Enough to cover expenses."

He looks back to that time when his enterprise wanted to close down.

"We lost hope at one point in 2005. All our family members sat down together and considered whether to pack up and find a job, but all the family members wanted it to continue."

His outlook for next year's performance is much more positive with several foreign tour operators scheduled to bring in tourist groups. The company has already had tourists coming in from Australia, Europe and New Zealand.

Other than depending on foreign tourists the company also promotes itself locally.

"For the government sector sometimes we groundhandle for VIPs coming into the country as well as to cater for private companies on trips.

"This is our sixth year of business. When we reach 10 years, we will call it fruiting for 10 years. We have another four years to achieve this,"

The Brunei Times