http://www.thejakartapost.com/bali-d...velopment.html
Quote:
Bali’s tourist industry, together with the Tourism and Creative Industry Ministry, is working to fully support tourism development in Papua and West Papua as part of the government’s Bali and Beyond tourism program.
I Gusti Ngurah Putra, secretary of the ministry’s directorate general for tourism marketing, revealed Indonesia had to diversify its offering of tourist destinations to the international market.
Papua and West Papua, he said, had abundant natural beauty and cultural assets, which were still underexplored and underdeveloped as tourist attractions.
By diversifying tourist destinations, Indonesia would likely attain its national target of attracting 8.6 million foreign tourists, or even the more optimistic target of nine million, by the end of 2013.
Putra maintained that the movement of domestic visitors to destinations within the country would reach 250 million people in 2013, compared to 145 million in 2012. Growth in domestic tourists is expected to stand at 5.7 percent for the first quarter of 2013.
“Papua and West Papua will not be developed as complimentary destinations to Bali. Instead the two regions will be transformed into two special tourist destinations with distinct cultural, social and natural resources,” underlined Putra during the direct promo-
tion of Papua and West Papua as tourist destinations in Kuta over the weekend.
The ministry has allocated Rp 400 million (US$40,206) for the tourism promotion of Papua and West Papua in Bali.
The activities this weekend included tabletop meetings among tourist-related industries, cul-tural performances and an exhibition at Discovery Shopping Mall in Kuta.
I Ketut Ardhana, chairman of the Association of Indonesian Tour and Travel Agencies (ASITA), said 70 ASITA members had participated in the tabletop meeting.
“I am hoping there will be business transactions during the tabletop meeting,” Ardhana said.
Ardhana further explained that the inclusion of Papua and West Papua in the present Bali and Beyond tourism package would certainly enrich the content of the packages.
“Papua and West Papua are very special and this must be promoted widely,” added Ardhana.
He also said that by adding Papua and West Papua, Indonesian tourist destinations could be categorized as the best in Asia.
However, problems lay ahead, he said, with limited infrastructure and flights among the culprits.
“The air fares to Papua are much more expensive than those to Jakarta, Bangkok, Malaysia and Singapore.
Edi Sumarwanto, head of West Papua tourism office, said that he would prefer to invite quality tourists who cared about environmental and cultural preservation.
“Raja Ampat, for instance, is home to 75 percent of the world’s coral reefs. By luring mass tourism to the area, we cannot guarantee that they will abide by the regulations to preserve our precious natural assets,” Sumarwanto concluded.
Most tourists to Raja Ampat originate from the US, Europe and South Korea.
In 2005, only 900 tourists came to Raja Ampat. In 2013, he expected that there would be 47,000 people targeting Papua and West Papua as their holiday destinations.
“We are still facing problems accommodating such a large number of visitors, while at the same time maintaining the area’s naturally pristine state,” he said.
I agree with what Sumarwanto said. We need to research how to preserve the nature there first. And built tourism facilities that will not endanger the nature.
Papua does deserve the spotlights and good tourism. Lovely people and the most beautiful landscapes!
No it won't be another Bali and I surely hope not. Papua is special and unique and I hope the tourism will give them an economic boost -cheers
