Jakarta, March 5 (Antara) - In the tourism sector, Indonesia can benefit from the visit of Saudi King Salman bin Abdulaziz al-Saud in the country: attracting Saudi investment and increasing Middle-East tourist arrivals.
So far, Indonesia has not succeeded in exploiting the Middle East market. It is only a small market for the country's tourism, but the historical visit is expected to serve as an effective promotion for the country.
The visit is also expected to attract Saudi investment in tourism apart from other sectors, such as oil, gas, and public housing. According to Tourism Minister Arief Yahya, Saudi Arabia has expressed interest in participating in the development of the tourism sector, notably in West Sumatra and West Nusa Tenggara provinces.
"They have shown interest in West Nusa Tenggara and West Sumatra. This is our opportunity to continue to lobby the Middle East investors that are members of King Salman's delegation," the minister said referring to the current visit of King Salman in Indonesia from March 1 to March 9, 2017.
West Sumatra has attractive destinations with tourism potential such as Mandeh, which is in Pesisir Selatan District in West Sumatra province.
Mandeh region has the potential to be developed as a maritime and nautical tourist destination. Various water adventure activities that can be performed there include snorkeling, scuba diving, water skiing, fishing and banana boat ride. Mandeh region has beautiful coral reefs and 400 ha of mangrove forests that could attract.
According to Minister Yahya, Vice President Jusuf Kalla has directed that a proposal be prepared on the development of tourism sector in West Sumatra. They (Saudi Arabia side) are very interested in developing tourism in West Sumatra.
Saudi Arabia is also interested in the development of the Mandalika tourist resort area in West Nusa Tenggara province, where the government owns a land of 1.1 hundred hectares, while in West Sumatra, it owns 400 hectares, both of which can be developed in cooperation with Saudi investors.
Sitting on a 1,175 hectare area in Pujut subdistrict, Central Lombok District, Mandalika is being developed as a world-class tourist resort comparable to Bali. The US$3 billion Mandalika Resort project is expected to attract one million tourists annually.
Besides investment benefit, the visit of Saudi king can also promote Indonesian tourism and attract more tourists from the Middle East. So far, the number of tourists arriving in Indonesia from the Middle-East is still small.
"The number of foreign tourists from the Middle East to Indonesia was recorded to have reached 100 thousand, while visits to Malaysia ranged from 100 thousand to 200 thousand and visits to Thailand were recorded at 600 thousand. King Salman's visit can be very beneficial for Indonesia's tourism. We hope for his endorsement to encourage tourists from the Middle East to visit Indonesia," Minister Yahya said.
Yahya assured that the visit of King Salman to Indonesia, particularly to Bali would be able to increase the number of Middle-East tourists to the tourist resort island by up to 50 percent.
"King Salman will be the best endorser after his visit to Indonesia. If we talk marketing, the main point is to have a celebrity or a public figure, and King Salman is such an influential and important figure in the Middle East," he said, in the Presidential Palace complex in Jakarta, on Tuesday.
The minister believed that the king's visit to the country also serves as a free advertising platform for the tourism slogan 'Wonderful Indonesia.' The visit would be a big free promotion for Bali, which the Singaporean-based DestinAsian Readers Choice Award (RCA) 2017 has named as the world's best island.
After all, King Salman and entourage, after having a state visit from March 1 to 3, is now on vacation in Bali from March 4 to 9, 2017. Apparently the King does not want to miss seeing the beauty of Bali during his stay in the country. The King must have heard how Bali has attracted everybody including world leaders such President Barack Obama.
To support all publication regarding the king visit in Bali both domestically and internationally, the Ministry of Tourism even cut 50 percent of its budget of tourism promotion with the usual cooperation with Al Jazeera, a Doha-based state-funded broadcaster.
Regarding the visit, Bali provincial government has made various preparations such as facilities and accommodation, as well as security personnel to ensure that the king and his delegates would be pleased and comfortable during their stay in Bali.
The local government is striving to highlight the Balinese art and culture as the identity of the province, which is popular worldwide as "The Land of Gods", to the Saudi King.
During his five-day holiday in Bali, King Salman and his delegates will stay in five luxury hotels in Nusa Dua, a resort area in the southern part of Bali. The king is also scheduled to visit some popular tourist attractions, such as the Besakih Temple, Tanah Lot, and Kuta Beach. (A014/S012)(T.A014/A/A. Abdussalam/Suharto) 05-03-2017 20:42:2 |
Tidak ada komentar:
Posting Komentar