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Tourism minister sets out objectives to amplify tourist industry on National Awakening Day
To commemorate National Awakening Day (Harkitnas), which fell on May 20, Tourism Minister Arief Yahya launched the #KebangkitanPariwisata (Tourism Revival) hashtag on social media as a way to elevate the Tourism Industry.
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Breathtaking landscapes in Bali. (Shutterstock/File)
T
o commemorate National Awakening Day, which fell on May 20, Tourism Minister Arief Yahya launched the #KebangkitanPariwisata (Tourism Revival) hashtag on social media as a way to elevate the Tourism Industry.
There are three general objectives that the ministry is working toward.
“The first is to be the best digital tourist destination in the world,” Yahya said.
Read also: Indonesian tourism gets ready to face digital invasion
Under Arief Yahya, the Tourism Ministry has launched a business-to-business online platform called Indonesia Travel Exchange that is free for practitioners in the tourist industry, including small and medium enterprises.
The second goal is to improve tourist village homestays. This year, the ministry targets adding 20,000 more homestays to reach a target of 100,000 homestays by 2019.
The third goal is to make tourism the leading sector and core component of the nation’s economy.
Read also: Semarang to release 4,700 lanterns on 470th anniversary
Currently, the tourist industry is the biggest contributor to Indonesia's GDP and foreign exchange.
Some 10 percent of national GDP comes from the tourist sector, while $US1 million of foreign exchange is able to create $1.7 million dollars of GDP.
The tourist industry also accounts for 9.8 million jobs, or 8.4 percent of the country’s job market.
In terms of providing employment opportunities, the industry has displayed a 30 percent increase over the last five years. (asw)
