RI Mulling Strategies To Attract Chinese Tourists

Beijing, Sept 18 (Antara) - Indonesia has plans to attract more Chinese tourists, but in order to do so it needs to have a good strategy, the country`s Minister of Tourism Mari Elka Pangestu said here on Tuesday. "Besides that Indonesia must also move quickly and more professionally to exploit the potential (offered by Chinese tourists)," she said after a meeting with the chairman of the China National Tourism Administration (CNTA), Shao Qiwei. During the meeting, the two officials agreed to renew a memorandum of understanding (MoU) on tourism signed by the two countries in 2000. The renewal was needed in view of the fast pace of development in the tourism market. According to the U.N. World Tourism Organization (UNWTO 2013) China has been ranked first as a tourism market supplier, with Chinese tourists spending up to US$102 million in 2012 or 40 percent higher than the US$73 million spent in 2011. The number of Chinese, who travelled abroad, has also surged quickly from only 10 million in 2000 to 83 million in 2012. However, the number of Chinese tourists flocking to Indonesia was still small and pegged at only 726,088 in 2012, which was lower than the number of Chinese tourists visiting Malaysia, which was recorded at 1.56 million and Thailand at 2.7 million. Pangestu stated that in view of this data, "We must have strategies and work quickly to increase the number of Chinese tourists coming to Indonesia though several means, including renewing the MOU." The renewal of the MOU will be followed up with other action plans including a joint promotion, exchange of information, improving travel facilities and tourism investment in the two countries. The MoU will spell cooperation not only between the two countries` central governments, but also regional governments and among tourism sectors of the two countries. Meanwhile, Shao Qiwei said he had agreed with Indonesia`s proposal to renew the MOU. He pointed out that tourism cooperation could enhance relations between the peoples of the two countries, which would spearhead positive relations between the two countries and also affect bilateral relations in other fields, such as trade and investment. Shao said China had also issued a new law related to tourism industry on April 25, 2013. The regulation, which will be effective October 1, will be used as a reference for China`s tourism cooperation with other countries, including Indonesia, he added. The law is aimed at regulating the working system and tourism products offered by tourism operators to make them more transparent, improve their quality, protect legal rights and interests of tourists and tourism operators and also regulate the tourism market, protect and ensure a rational use of tourism resources, as well as promote sustainable development and healthy tourism. With regards to this, the CNTA has agreed to familiarize its tourists with tourism destinations in Indonesia and especially tourism operators of Indonesia.