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Everybody likes Lake Toba
The government has designated Lake Toba a “super priority” tourist destination, along with Likupang in North Sulawesi, Mandalika in West Nusa Tenggara and Labuan Bajo in East Nusa Tenggara.
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President Joko “Jokowi” Widodo visits Parapat on the shores of Lake Toba in Simalungun regency, North Sumatra, on Wednesday. During the visit, he inaugurated a lakeside rehabilitation project in the area. (Courtesy of /Presidential Secretariat)
D
uring President Joko “Jokowi” Widodo’s visit to North Sumatra this week, he did not just inaugurate infrastructure projects near Lake Toba – which included seven ports, a highway and a wastewater treatment plant – he also showed how to win the hearts of ordinary people, even though in many cases he has struggled to deliver his promises.
Jokowi has often sought to accommodate the requests of people who meet him in person. He was scheduled to stay in North Sumatra until Friday, when he was to meet with the farmers of Liang Melas Datas village in Karo regency after a representative of the region’s farming community gave Jokowi three tons of oranges at Merdeka Palace last December.
The orange farmers came to Jakarta to beg the President to repair the roads to their villages, which had been damaged for more than 30 years. Jokowi promised he would.
The visit to Lake Toba gave Jokowi a chance to listen to the concerns and grievances of locals, who have expressed fear that they will be left behind and remain passive spectators as the region’s tourism development projects are carried out. Some residents, such as small-scale traders and landowners, say they have been adversely impacted by the infrastructure development.
The President’s trips to Parapat, Porsea and Balige, as well as the regencies of Samosir Island, Dairo and Karo also amounted to a show of appreciation for the local people, most of whom voted for him in the 2014 and 2019 presidential elections.
“I have seen major improvements here, so the tourism minister can later proceed with the rebuilding and rebranding program that will set Lake Toba apart from other tourist destinations. There is huge potential on offer around Lake Toba,” said the President.
Covering over 1,145 square kilometers and reaching a depth of 450 meters, Toba is the world’s largest crater lake and one of the deepest lakes in the world, as well as the largest in Southeast Asia. The body of water was created by a super-volcanic eruption some 74,000 years ago, the impacts of which reached Africa and Europe. The eruption is believed to have been the largest in the past 2 million years.
The government has designated Lake Toba a “super priority” tourist destination, along with Likupang in North Sulawesi, Mandalika in West Nusa Tenggara and Labuan Bajo in East Nusa Tenggara. Two airports, Silangit and Sibisa are currently operating around Lake Toba, and access to the lake will be made easier when the Medan-Parapat toll road becomes fully operational next year.
The development of Lake Toba as a primary tourist destination outside Bali will require local participation, and residents stand to benefit from the cultivation of a robust tourism industry there. The majority of the people living around the lake belong to Batak ethnic groups, which encompass a variety of cultures. They can certainly learn from peoples who live in prominent tourist destinations, such as the Balinese, about how to benefit from the industry while sustaining their culture.
Hopefully, the government’s promises will be followed by policies that accommodate the interests of all the stakeholders around Lake Toba, as well as the country’s wider tourism industry players.
