KUCHING: The Alliance of the Indigenous People of the Highlands of Borneo (FORMADAT) will host an ecotourism event namely Heart of Borneo Highlands Eco Challenge (HoBHEC) from June 27 to July 10 next year.
The third edition of this two-time event will be held at the highlands of Sabah and Sarawak (Malaysia), and neighbouring country, Kalimantan (Indonesia).
HoBHEC was introduced in 2015 by FORMADAT, a cross-border grassroots initiative aimed at promoting the awareness and understanding of highland community in the Heart of Borneo (HoB).
The objective of the event is to promote conservation in the highlands of Maligan and Kelabit as well as to revive the history, culture, and surveillance of nature.
Therefore, the concept of ‘taking nothing but pictures, leaving nothing but footprints’ is important to the organisers and the participants.
The registration is now open until May 31, 2019 and the organisers call on travellers and searchers around the world to experience a unique adventure, early registration which is before April 30, 2019 will enjoy a five per cent discount.
Hence, Sarawak’s FORMADAT deputy chairman and event director John Tarawe in a press conference yesterday said, “This event aims to promote ecotourism as a sustainable cottage industry for people living in highlands of Sarawak, Sabah and North Borneo – all within HoB.”
He added that the event was supported by the World Wide Fun for Nature Malaysia (WWF-Malaysia), Universiti Malaysia Sarawak (Unimas), Ministry of Tourism and the Borneo Heart Tourism Task Force.
“We also hope to create sustainable alternative lifestyles for the local community through this eco-tourism event and enhance the appreciation of the environment among locals and visitors,” he said.
FORMADAT also hopes HobHEC III will assist the northern market of Borneo’s highlands as a green tourist destination, in line with the ‘Visit Heart of Borneo’ campaign launched this year.
From June 27 to July 10 next year, this event offers a variety of packages with multiple routes to meet the needs and interests of different participants.
The shortest path is five days, while the longest track may take up to two weeks.
HoBHEC III offers seven packages for 2019 participants: Cross Country Journey (5H4M), Jungle Exploration (5D4M), A Walk in the Clouds (7H6M), Journey in the Wild (9H8M), Highland Discovery (10H9M), Highlands Adventure (10H9M ), and Warrior’s Trail (14H13M) cost between RM2,300 and RM5,650.
For more information about the packages, the public can access the website at www.hobecochallenge.com
