Jakarta (ANTARA) - The annual national tourism agenda Karisma Event Nusantara (KEN) in 2023 was visited by a total of 7.36 million people, Minister of Tourism and Creative Economy Sandiaga Salahuddin Uno revealed.

He noted that during the event, the total value of goods and services provided had reached Rp212 billion (US$13.4 million), leading to economic impacts totaling Rp12.3 trillion (around US$778 million).

"We had involved 11,399 micro, small and medium enterprises, 36,500 workers, 142,700 artists and as many as 839 associations and communities, with the total value of economic impacts reaching Rp12.3 trillion," he remarked during the launch of KEN 2024 in Jakarta on Saturday.

He informed that during the period from January to November 2023, a total of 10.4 million foreign tourists visited Indonesia, adding that 749.1 million trips were registered involving domestic tourists during the said period.

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KEN constitutes a strategic program devised by the Tourism and Creative Economy Ministry to promote Indonesia's tourism destinations through various events in the hopes of boosting the number of international tourist visits and encouraging more Indonesians to enjoy domestic tourist attractions.

The ministry first organized KEN in 2021, featuring 83 events held in a total of 34 provinces across Indonesia.

For KEN 2024, the ministry decided to choose 110 events through a selection period in November-December last year. The selection process involved three main stages: administrative selection, content selection, and interviews.

In selecting potential events, the ministry formed a curating team that comprised experts in five fields; idea and innovation, marketing and communication strategies, event management, financial management, and impact analysis.

Of 252 events proposed by provincial tourism offices across the country, the ministry decided to include 110 events to this year's edition of KEN.

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Translator: Sinta A, Tegar Nurfitra
Editor: Jafar M Sidik
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