I

ndonesia, arguably the world'€™s largest archipelagic country with a vast diversity of cultures, rich in natural attractions and historical heritage, logged a mere 9.73 million foreign tourist arrivals last year, compared to its neighbors Malaysia and Thailand, which each saw more than 29 million foreign visitors and Singapore with 16.2 million.

What an utterly dismal performance.

Travelers could actually visit Indonesia every year without ever having to go back to the same tourist destination, as there are dozens of fairly accessible tourist attractions in Java, Sumatra, Kalimantan, Sulawesi and the Maluku Islands, apart from the world-famous island of Bali.

Yet, due to a lack of well-designed promotional programs and poor policy coordination, Indonesia remains among the least favorite destinations in the ASEAN region. This deficiency is quite damaging because a lack of coordination, either of policies or of activities in the sectors related to tourism, has become one of the biggest barriers to wooing foreign tourists to Indonesia.

The more important pillars of the travel and tourism business such as transportation infrastructure, health and hygiene, security and regulatory requirements lie completely beyond its control as they come under the jurisdiction of a variety of ministries. The 2009 Tourism Law does stipulate the strategic importance and imperative need for strategic coordination of policies and activities in the various sectors related to travel and tourism such as customs, immigration, quarantine, security and order, physical infrastructure, health and promotional activities.

But it does not elaborate on how this policy coordination should be institutionalized and managed on a day-to-day basis, only saying that the coordination will be led by the President and Vice President and technical details on the coordination will be formulated in a presidential decree.

It is encouraging, however, to learn that the government is finalizing programs to set up a single administrative authority and single management for developing and promoting each of 10 new major destinations across the archipelago.

The single-authority concept and management, if properly implemented, is an effective means of strengthening coordination in meeting the needs of international tourists because, administratively, the tourism sector and its related businesses are now under the jurisdiction of many different ministries.

Other good news is that the number of countries granted the visa-waiver facility will be increased this year to more than 170 from 90. This facility, combined with smooth and seamless customs checks at airports, will be a great incentive for international tourists to come to Indonesia.

Indeed as an industry based on nature and culture, tourism should be one of the most suitable businesses for Indonesia to develop because of the multiplier effect and labor-intensive nature of its operations. Travel-related businesses such as hotels, restaurants, transportation, handicraft and cultural shows are all labor intensive, the very kind of businesses needed to absorb the huge pool of job seekers.

Coordinated promotion programs for the 10 new major destinations in Java, Sumatra, Sulawesi, Nusa Tenggara, Papua and other major islands should enable the country to double its tourist arrivals to 20 million in 2019.