"Yes, it has been increased from the initial US$6 billion. With the latest data, we have a target of nearly US$10 billion," he informed at the opening of the Indonesian Tourism Industry Association's (GIPI’s) national working meeting in Jakarta on Tuesday.
He expressed the hope that foreign exchange will be boosted, including by increasing the number of flights to attract foreign tourists, whose number is targeted to reach 8.5 million in 2023.
Uno said he is confident that the target will be achieved considering that in the first quarter of this year, the number of foreign tourist visits was recorded at 2.25 million.
On account of the visits, the tourism foreign exchange earnings are expected to reach above the government's target, he added.
Meanwhile, he is targeting that the contribution of the creative economy sector will reach US$26.46 billion this year, with an added economic value of Rp1.279 trillion, and the creation of 45 million new jobs in the tourism and creative economy sector.
On the same occasion, the minister also asked GIPI, as the vanguard of Indonesia's tourism, to push for direct flights to Indonesia to attract more tourists to the country.
This is because, in terms of connectivity, Indonesia is still lagging and needs encouragement to operate direct flights to a number of tourist destinations.
GIPI chairperson Haryadi Sukamdani said that the association will push for the opening of direct flights, including with China and India.
"If we open direct flights, there is a lot of potential, but we must consider the traffic records as well. India and China both want a direct flight to Indonesia. We will be pushing for this," he added.
As of now, flights originating from Singapore, countries in the Middle East region, and Hong Kong dominate Indonesia's direct flights.
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Translator: Sinta Ambarwati, Resinta S
Editor: Azis Kurmala
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