Statistically, 60 percent of tourists from neighboring Malaysia and Singapore will revisit."Jakarta (ANTARA News) - The annual international maritime event, Sail Karimata Strait 2016, is expected to attract around 15,000 tourists, Minister of Tourism Arief Yahya said here.
"The target is to attract 5,000 international tourists and 10,000 domestic tourists," Minister Arief Yahya announced here during the launch of the Sail Karimata Strait on Wednesday.
The amount of tourist spending was expected to reach Rp65 billion (around US$5-6 million) in case of foreigners and Rp10 billion ($740,000) in case of domestic tourists.
The Sail Karimata Strait 2016 will take place in four provinces located on the Kalimantan and Sumatra Islands: West Kalimantan, Jambi, Bangka Belitung and Riau Islands.
The event will also promote the tourism destinations in the regions.
"Statistically, 60 percent of tourists from neighboring Malaysia and Singapore will revisit," Yahya observed.
The Coordinating Minister of Maritime Affairs, Rizal Ramli, launched the international maritime event, Sail Karimata Strait 2016 at the Agency for the Assessment and Application of Technology (BPPT) Building on Wednesday.
The main activities will include a national seminar on maritime affairs to be organized in Jambi on August 25, 2016, the Belitung Festival on October 22 and Riau Islands Maritime Festival on October 28.
A series of activities to welcome the Sail Karimata Strait, however, will begin on June 1 itself while the peak event will be held in North Kayong District, West Kalimantan, on October 15.
The Sail Karimata Strait event is being held for the eighth time since Sail Indonesia was first organized in 2009.
The previous sail events were Sail Bunaken, held in North Sulawesi in 2009, Sail Banda in Maluku in 2010, Sail Wakatobi-Belitung in Southeast Sulawesi and Bangka Balitung 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 Sail Tomini held in the provinces of Central Sulawesi and Gorontalo in 2015.
The launching of the 2016 Sail Karimata Strait was also attended by Expert Staff of the Minister of Maritime and Fishery, Suseno Sukoyono, and Chief of Staff of the Indonesia Navy, Admiral Ade Supandi.
Like the other sail events, the current edition is aimed at promoting tourism and boosting regional development.
Some 70 yachts will participate in the sail, in addition to warships and traditional boats.
(Reporting by Ade Irma Junida/Uu.A059/INE/KR-BSR/A014)
Editor: Priyambodo RH
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