Following on from an article stating that Sandiaga Uno, the Tourism and Creative Economy Minister, was looking to create 4.4-million new jobs by 2024, Tempo are now reporting, that he is also targeting 3.5-million to 7.4-million tourist visits in 2023, which is double this year’s numbers.
The World Tourism Organization (UNWTO) has predicted that the tourism sector is likely to grow by 70-percent in 2023 compared to 2019, which Sandiaga believes is “a very good signal after the pandemic.”
The former deputy governor of Jakarta also added that there are many challenges such as Volatility, Uncertainty, Complexity, and Ambiguity (VUCA) including increased ticket prices after the COVID-19 pandemic. However, he believed that the right policies could accelerate the recovery of the industrial, tourism, and creative economy markets.
The ministry is still focusing on domestic tourists, instead of foreign tourists. “However, I believe that with a better visa policy, ease of connectivity, as well as more direct flights, we can achieve the 2023 target,” predicted Sandiaga.
Supporting this target, the Ministry of Tourism and Creative Economy is developing five super priority destinations in Borobudur, Mandalika, Labuan Bajo, Lake Toba, and Likupang, through events and aiming to improve the quality of tourism through upskilling, reskilling, and new skilling for human resources.
The ministry is also focusing on several superior programs such as tourist villages, creative districts/ cities, and Indonesian culinary diplomacy dubbed “Spice of The World” which is expected to show significant progress in 2023. “So it seems that next year will be quite bright for tourism,” Sandiaga said.
As of Q3 2022, the growth curve of the tourism sector has increased significantly. “We see the tourism sector beginning to bounce back starting from around 350,000-tourist visits, which rose sharply by almost 2,000-percent compared to June 2022,” said Sandiaga.
Sources: Tempo, Menparekraf
