South Korean agency to help develop industry

Indra Harsaputra ,  THE JAKARTA POST ,  Surabaya   |  Wed, 11/25/2009 2:12 PM  |  The Archipelago

The Korean International Cooperation Agency (Koica), a South Korean government-sponsored institution aimed to provide aid to developing countries, has pledged to help develop the tourism industry in East Java.

Koica Indonesia Office Resident Representative Jong-Seon Lee said East Java had good natural tourism potential that had attracted many Korean visitors.

"Many Korean tourists visit Mount Bromo after going to Bali. They like East Java's exotic natural views," Lee said on the sidelines of a meeting with officials from the East Java Culture and Tourism Agency, in Surabaya on Monday.

Since August 2009, Lee said, Koica had been working with the Indonesian government to improve human resources, good governance, energy resources and infrastructure as well as social welfare and health.

"We have deployed experts to a number of regions in East Java. Among were computer experts sent to train administration officials," he said. His agency had also provided computers to a number of administrative institutions in the province.

Apart from providing capacity-building programs to public officials, this year Koica was set to help develop environmental-based education, ecotourism management and disaster information systems.

East Java Tourism and Culture Agency head Djoni Irianto expressed hopes that the province's cooperation with Koica could be improved to develop its natural and human resource potential. "We also hope the Korean government will help us promote our tourism potential in Korea."

To help increase the number of tourist visits to the province in 2010, Djoni said his office would concentrate on the development of tourist villages across East Java.

"We are targeting European and Asian tourists through tourist villages," he said.

Djoni said his office would establish four more tourist villages in East Java to add to the six already in existence. "However, we still need to study the plan thoroughly to make the additional tourist villages meet with the minimum requirements of having infrastructure and potential in sectors of husbandry, agribusiness, food crops and bioenergy-management sectors," he said.

A tourist village must also have attractive cultural and natural potential as well as traditional communities, he said.

The six tourist villages already in operation are Poncokusumo in Malang regency (focusing on agribusiness), Tutur Nongkojajar in Pasuruan regency (agribusiness), Bejijong in Mojokerto regency (stone sculpture), Ngadisari in Probolinggo (agribusiness), Tamanan in Bondowoso regency (rafting) and Bumiaji in Batu municipality (agribusiness).

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