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senior tourism observer on Thursday urged the provincial administration to push small manufacturing companies to develop unique, high quality products that could attract more tourists visiting the island, hence boosting its tourism income.

Observer Bagus Sudibya said that the annual circulation of money in Bali'€™s tourist industry could reach nearly US$4 billion from incoming foreign and domestic tourists alone.

He said that the turnover in the tourism sector in Indonesia could reach up to Rp 100 trillion ($8.37 billion), of which 40 percent was derived from Bali.

'€œThe turnover is so high in the tourism sector in Bali. This sector is one of the main sources of the state'€™s tax income, besides other forms such as income from Visa on Arrival applications,'€ Sudibya said.

'€œThis sector is also the island'€™s economic backbone,'€ he added.

Sudibya said that the amount fluctuated according to the number of incoming tourists, the amount they spent and their duration of visit.

'€œThe more they spend and stay, the higher our income,'€ Sudibya said, putting emphasis on the need for a strategy to entice them and make them stay longer.

The production of high quality products, he said, could attract quality tourists that also had an interest in environmental conservation, as well as culture and local customs.

Sudibya said the rising amount of construction work on the island also boosted the economy. Over the last several years, Bali has seen investors pour money into the development of hotels, travel agencies, the airport expansion, toll road construction and dock repairs.

Out of more than 2.9 million foreign tourists coming to the province, Bali Tourism Agency head Ida Bagus Kade Subhiksu said that their average daily spend was $155.27 for a stay of around 9 to 10 days.

As for domestic tourists, Subhiksu revealed there were more than 6.06 million, with an average daily spend of Rp 635,000, totaling $1.17 billion.

By the end of this year, Subhiksu predicted that 3.18 million foreigners and 6.28 million local tourists would have visited Bali in the year. Their daily expenditure was expected to reach $160 and Rp 700,000 for stays of 10 and four days respectively.

The number was higher when business projects were included, he said. Yet, Subhiksu also cited the high number of guests coming to the island to purchase handicrafts.

'€œThe monetary value in this sector is indeed high, and it comes to all the businessmen, locals as well as the government,'€ he said.

Badung Tourism Agency head Cokorda Raka Darmawan said that income from hotel and restaurant tax in his area increased every year.

In 2010, Badung reaped up to Rp 798.83 billion, while this increased to Rp 969.35 in the following year.

In 2012, Rp 1.22 trillion was earned and this contributed more than 75 percent toward the regency'€™s revenue.