The minister conveyed the statement during a meeting with Singapore's Minister of Foreign Affairs Vivian Balakrishnan in Singapore to discuss efforts to intensify cooperation in the tourism sector to create job opportunities.
"He is a good friend. We believe in post-pandemic recovery efforts," Minister Uno noted in a statement received in Jakarta, Monday.
The minister highlighted that Indonesia and Singapore shared sound relations in the tourism sector, as was apparent from the fact that the cities of Batam and Bintan, located in the Riau Islands, had received a fairly high number of visits by Singaporeans.
Uno is upbeat that this can increase the number of jobs, both in Batam and Bintan as well as the surrounding areas.
"I am very grateful for the support assistance related to ferry and flight capacity from Singapore to several destinations in Indonesia," he remarked.
Singapore's Minister of Foreign Affairs Vivian Balakrishnan believes that the opportunity was wide open for Indonesia and Singapore to open their borders to one another after the pandemic.
He felt confident that the relations between both nations, especially in the tourism sector, could be improved notably and be beneficial for both countries.
"In future, we will see more flight trips, ferries, and others. In addition, we will see simplification of the process for tourism. This will be a great opportunity for Indonesia and Singapore," he affirmed.
Related news: 800 Singaporean tourists plan to visit Batam, Bintan until May
Some 800 foreign tourists from Singapore are scheduled to visit Nongsa Sensation in Batam City and Lagoi in Bintan District under a travel bubble scheme until May 2022, Riau Islands Tourism Service Head Buralimar earlier stated.
"Tourists have purchased tickets to visit Batam and Bintan in the near future until May 2022," Buralimar stated.
The head noted that out of a total of 800 foreign tourists, as many as 300 people will visit Nongsa Sensation, Batam City. Meanwhile, the remaining 500 people will visit the Lagoi tourist area in Bintan District.
"All tourists will depart from the Tanah Merah Port in Singapore," he affirmed.
Buralimar also remarked that on February 23-25, 2022, some 50 foreign tourists from Singapore had visited Nongsa Sensation, Batam City, while the number of foreign tourists having visited Bintan until February 26 had reached 90 people.
"This is the first foreign tourist visit after two years of the pandemic," he noted.
He stated that based on the evaluation, no problems had, so far, been encountered in tourists visits to Batam and Bintan.
"No foreign tourists have been found exposed to COVID-19," he stated.
On a separate occasion, Riau Islands Governor Ansar Ahmad expressed optimism that the number of Singaporean foreign tourists visiting Riau Islands would increase to support revival of the tourism industry impacted by the pandemic for almost two years.
Ahmad also urged the Government of Singapore to increase the quota of foreign tourists visiting the Riau Islands, from 300 people per week to three thousand people per week.
Related news: Indonesia optimistic Singaporeans' visits to Lagoi will increase
Related news: Singaporean tourists' first arrival at Lagoi on Feb 25: official
Translator: M Baqir, Azis Kurmala
Editor: Suharto
Copyright © ANTARA 2022
