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Garuda to add more flights for IMF-WB meetings
National flag carrier Garuda Indonesia will add more international flight routes to anticipate a growing number of airline passengers, particularly those heading to Bali for the International Monetary Fund (IMF)-World Bank (WB) Annual Meetings, from Oct
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ational flag carrier Garuda Indonesia will add more international flight routes to anticipate a growing number of airline passengers, particularly those heading to Bali for the International Monetary Fund (IMF)-World Bank (WB) Annual Meetings, from Oct. 12 to 14 on the resort island.
“We will add 14 international flight routes per day, from Oct. 6 to 11,” said Garuda Indonesia president director Pahala N Mansury in Tangerang on Monday.
He said the flag carrier would provide a total of 27,000 seats in anticipation of the arrival of around 21,000 participants to the IMF-WB Annual Meetings.
In addition, Garuda Indonesia has also planned to switch 12 existing routes to expedite the arrivals in Bali. For instance, departures from Incheon, South Korea, to Jakarta would be rerouted directly to Bali instead.
“We also plan to alter the route from Haneda Airport, Japan, to Jakarta,” Pahala said.
Indonesia was appointed as the host of the IMF-WB Annual Meetings, considered the biggest international conference on the world economy, which will see 15,000 participants in attendance, including central bank governors, finance ministers, academics, non-governmental organizations (NGO) and industry players from 189 countries.
The government has stated that it would spare no expense as it prepares to host the meetings.
Coordinating Maritime Affairs Minister Luhut Pandjaitan said in March that among the measures the government would prepare for the convenience of meeting attendees were extra flights, high-speed internet coverage, security personnel and more than 60 holiday destinations.
The measures include negotiating for extra business-class and executive-class seats on Garuda Indonesia’s flights, placing more than 12,000 military personnel and police officers on guard and readying 21 hotels to accommodate as many as 20,000 guests.
“We will ensure everything is catered for,” said Luhut, who is also the head of the meetings’ organizing committee. “We have also conducted studies to ensure that none of the Rp 800 billion [US$58.26 million] budget for the event goes to waste.”
Finance Minister Sri Mulyani Indrawati said infrastructure and financial technology (fintech) development would be among the main points on the meetings’ agenda.
Bank Indonesia Governor Agus Martowardojo added that discussions on ways to ensure inclusive and sustainable global economic growth would also take place prominently in the event.
Meanwhile, 15 NGOs plan to hold a conference from Oct. 8 to 10 ahead of the meetings.
“The people summit on alternative development is aimed at consolidating the voices of civil society in Indonesia and other countries that have been critical of policies and programs initiated by the World Bank and the IMF,” said Hamong Santono, chairman of the summit’s organizing committee, earlier this month.
He said the organizers had prepared themed workshops centered on the historical debt of the World Bank and the IMF; anticorruption efforts, transparency and development funding; public service, inclusion and gender fairness; tax fairness and disparity; legally binding treaties in business and human rights for international financial institutions; human rights, public infrastructure and the tourist industry; digital economy and decent jobs; and climate change and natural resources. (rfa)
