Jakarta, Sept 8 (Antara) - The international sailing festival of Sail Tomini, launched in May and scheduled to conclude in Parigi Moutong District, Central Sulawesi, on September 19, is expected to boost tourism in Indonesia's eastern region.
"Tomini Bay is being developed as the main maritime tourism destination," Coordinating Minister for Culture and Human Resource Development Puan Maharani stated during the launch of the sailing event in May.
As Tomini Bay borders the provinces of Gorontalo, Central Sulawesi, and North Sulawesi, the international sailing festival will directly have a positive impact on the development of tourism in the three provinces.
Sail Tomini, which is expected to be attended by 10 thousand guests, includes 24 events, such as the Boalemo Festival in Gorontalo province, a yacht rally, the Surya Baskara Jaya healthcare operation, a village development movement, national seminars, a diplomatic tour, a Tomini Bay research expedition, and visits by media publications.
Some 100 foreign yachters from various countries are expected to participate in Sail Tomini 2015. Marine Affairs and Fisheries Minister Susi Pudjiastuti expressed hope that the event would help to promote tourism in Central Sulawesi and Gorontalo.
Haswan Yunas, Minister Maharani's deputy, had remarked earlier that scores of tourists were expected to attend the event.
"At least 10 thousand domestic and foreign visitors are expected to flock to Kayubura beach of Parigi Moutong district during the Sail Tomini event," Yunas stated.
He reiterated that the site for Sail Tomini's main event was very attractive and included several facilities and adequate infrastructure, such as electricity, clean water, drainage, sanitation, telecommunications, and other supporting structures.
"The site for Sail Tomini's main event, which is being built at a cost of some Rp30 billion, is strategically located as it is at the heart of Sulawesi island and intersects with the Trans-Sulawesi road, which connects with the rest of the provincial capitals on the island," Yunas noted.
Yunas also expressed hope that following the conclusion of Sail Tomini's main event, the Parigi Moutong district government would further improve its facilities and infrastructure at Kayubura beach and would transform it into a national and international Meetings, Incentives, Conferences, and Exhibitions (MICE) tourism site.
MICE is a form of tourism wherein large groups, with the help of advance planning, are brought together for a specific purpose.
Tourist attractions in Central Sulawesi include the Toli-toli beach city, Lutungan recreational Island, Sematang Island Beach, Santigi Island, Talise Beach, Tirta Bahari Beach, Bulu Masomba camping site, Patunonju Archaeological Park, and Bora old village.
Spokesman of Central Sulawesi's Lore Lindu National Park Achmad Yani expressed optimism that Sail Tomini 2015 would increase tourist arrivals in Central Sulawesi province.
"We continue to conduct maintenance work on several facilities at the national park in order to attract as many tourists as possible during the international maritime event of Sail Tomini," Yani revealed on May 8.
He noted that infrastructure and supporting facilities at the Lore Lindu National Park are being improved to draw more domestic and foreign tourists, as well as the participants of Sail Tomini.
The Lore Lindu National Park, a huge protected forest area in the districts of Donggala and Poso, was declared a UNESCO Biosphere Reserve in 1978 and was formed through the unification of three existing reserves: the Lore Kalamanta Nature Reserve, the Lake Lindu Recreation and Protection Forest, and the Lore Lindu Wildlife Reserve.
The park, which is located south of the town of Palu, covers an area of 2,180 square kilometers, with altitudes ranging between 200 and 2.3 thousand meters above sea level.
Apart from its rich wildlife and picturesque landscapes, the Lore Lindu National Park contains over 400 granite megaliths in Bada Valley, varying in size from just a few centimeters to 4.5 meters tall, the largest found in Indonesia.
The international sailing festival in Tomini Gulf is therefore expected to help promote the national park in particular, and Central Sulawesi in general.
Tomini Bay is one of the largest bays in Indonesia and is rich in maritime natural resources.
The six million-hectare (ha) bay has a coral area measuring 1,031 ha and a mangrove forest covering an area of 785.10 ha.
"No wonder, Tomini Bay is being developed as the main maritime tourism destination and a national food barn," Minister Maharani noted in a statement.
Since 2011, the Central Sulawesi provincial government was prepared to host Sail Tomini in 2014, but as the province was selected to host Nusantara Day in December 2013, hence instead, Sail Raja Ampat 2014 was held in West Papua.
However, the local government continued to convince all parties that Central Sulawesi is ready and capable of hosting Sail Tomini 2015 as part of Sail Indonesia.
As part of the Sail Indonesia series, Sail Tomini is the seventh event after Sail Bunaken held in North Sulawesi in 2009, Sail Banda in Maluku in 2010, Sail Wakatobi-Bitong in Southeast Sulawesi and Bangka-Belitung Islands in 2011, Sail Morotai in North Maluku in 2012, Sail Komodo in East Nusa Tenggara in 2013, Sail Raja Ampat in West Papua in 2014, and now, Sail Tomini 2015 in Central Sulawesi. ***3***
(A014/INE)
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(T.A014/A/BESSR/A. Abdussalam) 08-09-2015 19:30:4 |
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