What About Kuching can be the top regional cultural festival

Abdul Karim (centre) looking at a beaded basket made by craftswomen from Belaga at the Beads Abuzz bazaar held in conjunction with the Borneo International Beads Conference in Kuching.

- ZULAZHAR SHEBLEE/The Star

KUCHING: The What About Kuching (WAK) festival has the potential to grow into a top regional event similar to the Edinburgh Fringe Festival, according to state Tourism, Arts and Culture Minister Datuk Abdul Karim Rahman Hamzah.

He said WAK had grown from strength to strength since its introduction in 2017, bringing together the public and private sectors to celebrate the arts, culture and lifestyle.

Now in its third edition, WAK 2019 has lined up 56 collaborating groups with 99 different events and more than 315 daily events over 30 days from Sept 28 to Oct 27.

"No longer can anyone say that there is nothing to do in Kuching. At this rate of growth, WAK will place Kuching as the destination of choice for festival-goers each October.

Also launched at the same time was WAK 2019's anchor event, the sixth Borneo International Beads Conference (Bibco).

Abdul Karim said the state government was a strong supporter of Bibco due to the potential in developing an artisan bead industry in Sarawak.

He said currently about 1,500 people in Sarawak were involved in making handicrafts for sale, including a significant number of bead craftsmen.

"Most of these craftspersons are only able to supplement their agrarian profession with their creations and only a handful are actively deriving a decent income from this pursuit professionally.

"I would like to see more of these artisans taking on this career path and will endeavour to my best ability to create greater opportunities for them to be successful," he said.

To chart the way forward, Abdul Karim said it was important to implement initiatives such as product-focused training, product development and branding.

Through events like Bibco, he added, local craftsmen could network with international designers and pick up new skills and ideas.

For the full list of WAK 2019 events, go to aboutkuching.com

-thestar online.