Jakarta (ANTARA) - The tourism and creative economy sector has recorded positive growth ahead of the government transition, according to Deputy Minister of Tourism and Creative Economy, Angela Tanoesoedibjo.

Based on the ministry's data, Indonesia has recorded 7.75 million international tourist arrivals and more than 598 million domestic tourist visits as of July 2024.

Meanwhile, foreign exchange earnings have reached US$7.46 billion, with the added value of the creative economy estimated at Rp749.58 trillion (around US$49.3 billion).

"The export value of creative products has also reached US$12.36 billion," Tanoesoedibjo informed at the opening of the "Wonderful Indonesia Outlook 2024/2025" in Jakarta on Thursday.

This shows that the tourism and creative economy sector can survive amid global dynamics, and even, continue to help build a more competitive and sustainable nation, she added.

"The Expert Survey Outlook for Creative Economy 2024–2025 released today shows that future tourism growth will be determined by economic stability and the development of quality and innovative destinations," she said.

"Meanwhile, the growth of the creative economy sector will depend on innovation, creativity, and collaboration between sub-sectors," she added.

Furthermore, the trend in the tourism sector is increasingly moving toward conscious and impactful travel.

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Tourists are now more likely to seek experiential travel—for instance, traveling 'like locals' and exploring destinations through the eyes of local residents.

Meanwhile, the trend in the creative economy sector is driven by the strong role of social media in promotion and branding.

"In response to this, there are two things that we cannot ignore, including sustainability and technology. The implementation of sustainable creative economy is no longer an option but needs to be positioned as a priority need," the deputy minister stressed.

Further, technological developments need to be viewed not as a substitute but as a new opportunity for moving toward building a quality and competitive creative economy.

The Ministry of Tourism and Creative Economy is preparing a number of programs to strengthen Indonesia's tourism and creative economy sectors in 2025.

The programs are expected to improve the welfare and skills of the community, and more particularly, enhance the quality of human resources in the tourism and creative economy.

The programs include the development of tourist villages and the strengthening of human resource potential through digitalization and content production.

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