Jakarta (ANTARA) - Tourism and Creative Economy Minister Sandiaga Salahuddin Uno estimated that money circulation from Indonesia’s halal tourism has the potential to rise by 25 percent in 2024, in line with the post-pandemic economic growth improvement.

“We see that the increase is in household consumption which is growing healthily,” he said at an iftar event in Istiqlal Mosque, Jakarta, on Saturday (March 16).

The movements of the community during the Islamic holy month of Ramadan and Eid al-Fitr are also projected to increase significantly. This, he said, is also confirmed by the number of people attending the iftar event at Istiqlal Mosque which reached 7 thousand people.

Uno assessed that halal tourism and the creative economy coexist, which was realized in the 2024 Istiqlal Ramadan Fair.

According to him, various activities at Istiqlal Mosque during Ramadan reflect the unity and diversity of Indonesian people. He also invited donors to take advantage of the Ramadan momentum by giving alms through the Istiqlal Mosque.

Uno affirmed that his ministry is making efforts to bolster micro, small, and medium enterprises (MSMEs) in the creative economy sector during Ramadan by providing training and mentoring.

In terms of capital, the ministry is also providing assistance that fits the needs of MSMEs, especially since the government is targeting that all MSMEs will already have a halal certificate before October 2024.

“There is no long time for the preparation. For that reason, we are facilitating halal certification which we must carry out before October,” he said.

On the same occasion, Uno stated that Indonesia is a popular halal tourist destination. Moreover, Indonesia has been named the Top Muslim Friendly Destination of the Year 2023 in the Mastercard-CrescentRating Global Muslim Travel Index (GMTI) 2023.

To this end, he invited the community and stakeholders to maintain the achievement this year.

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