With Indonesia about to officially name Prabowo Subianto the nation’s new president on 20 October, members of the outgoing administration have begun to reflect on how far the tourism sector has come in the past 10 years under the outgoing president, Joko Widodo.
Since Widodo (more commonly known in Indonesia as ‘Jokowi’) took office in 2014, Indonesia has seen a meteoric rise, both in terms of its global reputation as a holiday destination, and the diversity of attractions on offer. Jokowi has staked his reputation on development, and this legacy is clear to see in the tourism landscape.
“In the last 10 years under President Jokowi’s administration, we’ve witnessed significant progress in Indonesia’s tourism,” explains the current Minister of Tourism, Sandiaga Uno. “Infrastructure development, such as ports and roads leading to tourist destinations, has advanced massively,” he added.
Under Jokowi’s twin terms in office, millions of tourism-related jobs have been created, foreign arrivals have grown and the country’s tourism sector – long considered to be over-reliant on Bali as its flagship destination – has begun to diversify its offerings to new destinations, from North Sumatra and Java to Flores, Komodo and Lombok.
In addition, the emphasis has switched from a mass tourism model to a more sustainable paradigm. Sandiaga emphasised the sector’s transformative economic impact and the importance of sustaining growth through high-quality, sustainable tourism in the years ahead.
“According to the Travel and Tourism Development Index (TTDI), Indonesia, which was once outside the top 50 in global tourism, has now proudly risen to 22nd place,” noted the minister in a recent statement, in which he highlighted Indonesia’s continued rise in popularity on the global stage. “We have surpassed countries known for their strong tourism sectors, including Belgium, Turkey and New Zealand; in ASEAN, we now rank second, surpassing neighbours like Malaysia, Thailand, Vietnam, and the Philippines,” he added.
After weathering the storm of the global Covid-19 pandemic, Indonesia has emerged stronger – and more popular among international travellers – than ever before. New health regulations and safety protocols have been successfully implemented, while improvements to travel infrastructure and screening have helped to provide stronger contingency plans in the event of any future outbreaks.
Indonesia is now poised to make a full recovery. “We are currently hosting 13-14 million international tourists annually, compared to 16-17 million before the pandemic,” says Sandiaga, before noting that the overall quality of these tourist interactions has already surpassed pre-pandemic levels. “In terms of foreign exchange, we’ve exceeded previous figures, thanks to tourists staying longer and spending more locally. This has had a positive impact on job creation, with 25 million jobs generated in the tourism sector,” he said.
Looking to the future and the next administration, the minister outlined his aspirations. “My vision for tourism is for it to be of higher quality, sustainable, culturally rooted, and dignified. Our tourism should create jobs and prosperity, fulfilling the constitutional mandate to promote public welfare and educate the nation. Through our ‘tourism and peace’ tagline, we strive to contribute to global peace through the universal appeal of tourism.”
