REPUBLIKA.CO.ID, BANDUNG -- The Ministry of Tourism has set aside Rp1 trillion in 2015 for the overseas promotion of Indonesian tourism.

"Of the allocated funds, 75 percent of the funds will be used to promote Indonesia's tourism through global media agencies because our priority is to attract foreign tourists," Tourism Minister Arief Yahya stated during a working visit to the Bandung Institute of Tourism (STPB) on Friday.

He explained that the system to promote Indonesian tourism using the foreign media has been tested in collaboration with one of the Chinese television stations and also through social media.

"The result was an increase in the number of Chinese tourist arrivals to Bali by up to 50 percent," the minister pointed out.

Yahya has also formulated a promotion strategy called "BAS" concept that encompasses "branding", "advertising", and "selling" to target the markets in the ASEAN countries, Asia Pacific, Middle East, and Europe.

"First, we will prioritize the promotion in several countries, including Singapore, Malaysia, Australia, China, and Japan," said the minister, who earlier served as director of PT Telkom Indonesia.

Moreover, the main tourist destinations to be developed include Great Bali with a contribution of 40 percent of the total foreign tourist arrivals, Great Jakarta with 28 percent, and Great Batam with 26 percent.

"The 'great' concept is not only used for Bali, Jakarta, and Batam but also used for potential tourism sites in the surrounding areas, for instance, Bali with Lombok, and Jakarta with Bogor," the minister explained.

Yahya is optimistic that the number of foreign tourists visiting Indonesia could exceed 20 million in 2019, or equivalent to Rp240 trillion in foreign exchange earnings.

In 2014, the ministry recorded nine million foreign tourist arrivals in Indonesia, which resulted in Rp120 trillion in foreign exchange earnings.

Ikuti Whatsapp Channel Republika