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20 EXCLUSIVE INTERVIEW
The Many Faces of In
Beyond Bali, the archipelago’s countless treasures are highlighted
As many people from Europe think of Indonesia
primarily for places like Bali and Jakarta, the
Indonesian government plans to increase
awareness of 16 destinations including Sumatra,
Java, Lombok, Flores, Kalimantan, Sulawesi and
Papua… We asked Hon. Dr Mari Elka Pangestu,
Minister of Tourism and Creative Economy to tell
us more.
Hon. Dr Mari Elka Pangestu
Minister of Tourism and Creative Economy,
Republic of Indonesia
Prior to her current position as Minister of Tourism and Creative Economy, Mari Pangestu
was the Minister of Trade for Indonesia for seven years (2004-2011). As Minister of
Trade she played an active role in the WTO representing her country as well as groups
of developing countries such as the G33; initiated and led various Ministers of Trade
meetings; provided leadership in regional cooperation, including during the year Indonesia
being the Chair of ASEAN in 2011, and at APEC; and prepared and led all international
trade negotiations for Indonesia. In her current portfolio, she has also been active in
regional and international fora such as the ASEAN Tourism Forum, T20 (Tourism Ministers
of G20 Countries), and various bilateral talks and cooperation focusing on tourism and
travel facilitation. Dr Pangestu obtained her Bachelor and Master of Economics from the
Australian National University and her Ph.D in Economics from the University of California
Davis.
We have faced, and will
continue to face, the
challenge of Indonesia
to be known beyond Bali.
Don’t get me wrong, Bali
is a beautiful spot and
absolutely worth visiting.
We have developed 88
strategic tourist areas
under the National Tourism
Development Plan.
For the next three years, we
will focus on 16 of these,
including improvements in
Bali, and will develop and
promote existing sites with
surrounding areas such as
Borobudur, Jakarta, Lake
Toba, Flores, Komodo and
Toraja, as well as new
specialized areas such as
Wakatobi, Tanjung Puting,
Derawan and Raja Ampat.
In 2011, Indonesia
experienced strong growth
in tourist numbers from
Europe’s key nations like
the UK, Germany, France,
etc. What has been the
trend in 2012?
Numbers are still on the
rise. In the January-October
2012 period, tourist arrivals
in Indonesia were up when
compared to the same period
in 2011, despite the Euro zone
crisis. For example, arrivals
from the UK increased by 4
percent, Germany increased
by 9 percent and France
increased by 5 percent.
Only inbound arrivals from
Holland declined, by 6.8
percent.
In addition to raising
awareness, are you
planning to build
infrastructure to help
bolster tourism in these
regions… and in Indonesia
in general?
Firstly, we aim to extend
international direct flights
to Indonesia, with the new
airport in Bali scheduled
to be completed by the
middle of this year and the
airport in Lombok already
finished. Secondly, we also
compiled a cruise ship and
port development plan:
Benoa harbour as well as
nine other ports across the
country will be ready to
receive large ships in 2013-
2014. We hope to increase
the current cruise arrivals
from 118,000 to 500,000 by
2016. Thirdly, we experience
a strong investment growth
in hotels and restaurants.
From January to September
2012, foreign investments
tripled compared to the
whole of 2011, domestic
investments doubled in the
same period. This last point
is very important to us, as
we see the MICE sector as
a strong part of the national
tourism strategy to enhance
quality tourism.
What is your main focus
with your campaign
“Wonderful Indonesia” and
the colorful logo that goes
with it?
Aside from promoting our
country, we want to focus
on the people that live there,
as they are an essential
part of the experience of
Indonesia. It is about the
balance between Indonesia’s
huge natural and cultural
ITB BERLIN NEWS • Wednesday 6 th March 2013
www.itb-berlin-news.com