Jakarta, June 1 (Antara) - The Morotai Island in North Halmahera District, North Maluku Province, has all the natural beauty and cultural richness to become a prospective world-class tourist destination.
Along with the central government's "Wonderful Indonesia" tourism campaign to attract 12 million foreign tourists in 2016 and about 20 million by 2019, the Morotai local government adopted the same strategy to entice tourists by launching the "Wonderful Morotai Island 2016" campaign.
The "Wonderful Morotai" tourism brand is an interesting tourism promotional program as it combines enchanting cultural aspects with natural and man-made marine tourism attractions on the Morotoi Island where various festivals and activities are being held from March to December 2016.
"I am convinced that through the `Wonderful Morotai Island' program, Morotai will flourish and become one of the world-class tourist destinations that could attract foreign tourists. Morotai has its own uniqueness apart from being endowed with beautiful nature and a unique culture. Also, it is strategically located along the Asian and Australian shipping lanes," Tourism Minister Arief Yahya said while launching the "Wonderful Morotai Island 2016" event in Jakarta on Wednesday.
In order to support the tourism ministry in attaining its target set for tourist arrivals, the local government of Morotai Island has planned to organize a number of tourism events such as cultural festivals, coastal village festivals, Dodola Island festivals and World War II trade festivals.
Morotai Island District Head Weni R. Paraisu pointed out that the local government has made preparations for Morotai Island, designated among the country's 10 priority tourist destinations for development.
The preparations making it more accessible through air, sea and land. Visitors can arrive by air every day through the Leo Wattima airport, or by sea through Tobelo-Morotan ferry services five times a week. As for land transportation, the local government is upgrading the outer ring road of Morotai.
Several facilities, such as hotels, communication networks, tourist resorts and golf courses are also being developed.
Arie Suhendro of the 10 Top Priority Destinations Working Group on Morotai Island of the Tourism Ministry stated the island offers a blend of natural and man-made marine tourism and cultural attractions.
The cultural charms of the islands of Zum Zum, Tugu Trikora, and Gotalamo Village will also be showcased to tourists. Moreover, the Special Economic Zone of Morotai, the World War II Museum, and the Kolorai Island will be promoted as tourist attractions.
"We will continue to build the 3As (accessibility, attractiveness, and amenities) programs," noted Arie.
The 10 Top Priority Destinations Working Group on Morotai Island is taking steps to develop 24 isles as tourism destinations, of which 19 are diving areas. Accessibility will be developed in the form of sea, air, and land transportation facilities.
The main development is currently focused on the airport. Since March 18, 2016, Dimonim Air has operated a weekly flight using an 18-seater aircraft. However, since April 27, 2016, Wings Air has served tourists by operating a 70-seater aircraft seven times a week.
The development of electricity, water, accommodation, and telecommunication facilities is also being prioritized. Several state-owned companies and relevant institutions are working towards developing these facilities.
The Wonderful Morotai Island program had been launched, and the main activities will be held from September 26 to October 20, 2016, when thousands of yachts are scheduled to arrive in Morotai.
Tourism Minister Arief Yahya vowed to lend constant support and develop Morotai into a world-class tourist destination. Big investors need to come forward to develop amenities in Morotai in a bid to realize the goal.
Yahya noted that Morotai should be transformed into a world-class tourism destination due to its maritime and coastal attractions coupled with its rich World War II history.
Morotai holds strategic importance as Japan, Korea, Taiwan, the Philippines, and China are located in the north, while Singapore and other ASEAN members are situated on the west of the island. In the south lies Australia and New Zealand, while the Island Republic of Palau and the Pacific Island countries are located on the east of the island.
Various activities are being organized as part of the "Wonderful Morotai Island 2016" program to make it a grand event, he stated.
In the meantime, PT Jababeka, an Indonesia-based company primarily engaged in managing and developing real estate, and its partner from Taiwan will develop the tourism area in Morotai Island. It will develop its business in stages.
Morotai has a promising economic potential that Jababeka is ready to allocate funds worth some Rp6.8 trillion from the company and investors to develop the island.
PT Jababeka Morotai is to develop one thousand home-stays and toilets in 2017, three thousand units in 2018, and six thousand others in 2019.
"The government supports it through a financing program in cooperation with the Tourism Ministry; Public Works and Public Housing Ministry; and state-owned housing saving banks (BTN)," stated Arie Suhendro.
With its partner from Taiwan, Jababeka will then develop tourism areas, schools, agriculture, fisheries, and trade areas in Morotai. It will invite other investors from Taiwan to invest in tourism infrastructure development, worth trillions of rupiah.
The he head of the Taipei Economic and Trade Representative in Indonesia Andrew Hsia will follow up on Morotai Island's development. "Taiwanese firms are ready to help develop aquaculture, agriculture, tourism, and banking industries in Morotai," Jababeka Morotai Development advisor Basuri T. Purnama said during the launch of the event on Wednesday.
To become a world-class tourist destination, Morotai should have an airport meeting international standards. The government is currently building a 2.4 thousand-meter-long runway, which still needs to be extended by another 600 meters.
Arie is optimistic that Morotai would be able to attract some 500 thousand foreign tourists until 2019. In 2015, some one thousand foreign tourists had visited Morotai, and this year, it has set a target to lure 2,750 visitors. In 2017, the figure is expected to increase to 11 thousand and 66 thousand in 2018. Hence, by 2019, the number of foreign visitors to Morotai will reach some 500 thousand tourists.***1***A014/INE)
EDITED BY INE(T.A014/A/BESSR/A. Abdussalam) 01-06-2016 22:42: |
Tidak ada komentar:
Posting Komentar