Jakarta (ANTARA) - The Coordinating Ministry for Maritime and Investment Affairs’ Deputy of Coordination for Tourism and Creative Economy, Odo R. M. Manuhutu, underscored the importance of synergy among stakeholders to strengthen national tourism.

"We need to focus on the development of high-quality tourism to attract high-spender international tourists,” he stated in Jakarta on Tuesday.

With the growing young population and an ongoing demographic transition in mind, a synergistic program to strengthen tourism should be able to cater to the preferences of young tourists and mobilize its market potential.

Manuhutu stated that involvement of the private tourism sector is encouraged, especially to collaborate in maintaining the sustainability of development of the Super Priority Tourism Destination (DPSP) program.

Meanwhile, the Ministry of Tourism and Creative Economy’s Deputy for Destination and Infrastructure Development, Hariyanto, stated that the government will strengthen support and collaboration in developing tourist destinations and will focus on three aspects.

The first aspect is periodically assessing and monitoring the implementation of quality tourism in DPSPs through the Joint Secretariat for Accelerating the Development of the Tourism Sector. Later, this can be expanded to other destinations with development potential.

The next aspect is the development of tourism villages through the Indonesia Tourism Village Award (ADWI) competition in collaboration with Bank Indonesia, as well as the development of tourism villages and micro, small, and medium enterprises (MSMEs) that contribute to the tourism and creative economy sectors.

Deputy Governor of Bank Indonesia Aida S. Budiman emphasized the importance of accelerating the tourism sector’s recovery to support sustainable growth.

She drew attention to three important lessons from the tourism recovery process in 2023 that can serve as the foundation for strengthening future strategies to accelerate tourism.

The first lesson is strengthening domestic tourists' activities that support domestic tourism recovery, through the Proud to Travel in Indonesia (BBWI) strategy.

The second lesson is to optimize the increase in international tourists to support the improvement of foreign exchange earnings and national tourism performance.

The next lesson is accelerating tourist destination development by focusing on quality tourism, as outlined by the government in the National Medium-Term Development Plan (RPJMN) and ensuring inclusivity by optimizing the role of young entrepreneurs.

To encourage tourism performance, Bank Indonesia strengthens studies and advocacy, develops MSMEs, digitalizes payment systems that support tourism, and promotes tourism investment through the Investor Relations Unit (IRU), Regional Investor Relations Unit (RIRU), and Global Investor Relations Unit (GIRU).

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Translator: Martha, Luthfia, Azis Kurmala
Editor: Rahmad Nasution
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