MINISTER MAHARANI TO LAUNCH SAIL TOMINI IN JAKARTA NEXT WEEK by Fardah

   Jakarta, May 1, 2015 - Sail Tomini, the seventh edition of the international maritime event Sail Indonesia, will be officially launched by Coordinating Minister for Culture and Human Resources Development Puan Maharani in Jakarta on May 5, this year.     
   The peak event of Sail Tomini will be organized in Pangi Beach, Parigi Moutong district, around 75 kilometers west of Palu city, Central Sulawesi, on September 19, 2015. 
   "As the host, the provincial administration of Central Sulawesi wants to make the launch of Sail Tomini 2015 a success," Deputy Governor of Central Sulawesi Soedarto stated while chairing a coordination meeting held to discuss the launch preparations last week.   
   President Joko Widodo is scheduled to officially inaugurate Sail Tomini, which is part of the annual international maritime event Sail Indonesia.

        Sail Tomini's activities will not only be held in the district of Parigi Moutong but also in the Togian Islands, Tojo Una-Una district, and the provincial capital of Palu.

        Covering a total area of 63 thousand square kilometers, Central Sulawesi will require some Rp1.6 trillion from the state budget to prepare for Sail Tomini, Deputy Governor of Central Sulawesi Sudarto affirmed.

        The funds will be used to build infrastructure such as roads and renovate seaports, among other things, he explained.    
   The Central Sulawesi administration expects to receive a total of ten thousand guests during the event.

        The organizing committee has set up a media center for reporters covering the seventh annual Sail Indonesia event.   
   Parigi Moutong has natural scenic beauty to offer along with agrotourism, authentic culinary arts, and cliff climbing. It has one of the best cliffs in the country.     
   The Parigi Moutong District in Central Sulawesi Province plans to prepare one thousand homestay accommodations for the guests arriving for Sail Tomini 2015.

        "We have prepared 700 rooms in 300 houses of the local residents for homestay accommodations. In the next several weeks, we will increase the number to at least one thousand rooms," Mawardin, the head of the Parigi Moutong youth, sports and tourism office, recently reported.

        "The number of hotels and motels in Parigi is very limited, and therefore, the district head has instructed us to make an inventory of the local residents' houses that can be transformed into homestay accommodations in the villages such as Toboli in North Parigi and Torue in South Parigi," he affirmed.

        To promote Sail Tomini, President Director of state-owned postal company PT Pos and District Head of Parigi Moutong Syamsurizal Tombolotutu will sign a memorandum of understanding for printing Sail Tomini stamps.  
   Coinciding with Sail Tomini, the Boalemo Cultural Festival will also be held in Gorontalo as part of the sail activities. Boalemo beach is located in Gorontalo province and shares its border with the Tomini coastal area in Central Sulawesi.

        The local artists of Central Sulawesi will perform traditional dances such as Pontanu, Yele Fula, and Vose Sakaya to entertain the guests attending Sail Tomini, while Gorontalo's artists will perform a Saronde dance, among other acts.  
   The activities will have the involvement of the authorities and inhabitants of 18 districts and cities of Central Sulawesi province along with those of the neighboring Gorontalo province.

        During Sail Tomini, Gorontalo is keen to promote its undersea tourist resort Olele, which is located in Bone Bolango district.

        Some 40 yachts, with around 200 yachters participating in Sail Tomini, will also visit Saronde, Bugisa, and Mohinggito Isles on Ponelo Islands' sub-district, North Gorontalo district, Chairman of the Indonesian Yacht Tourism Association (ASWINDO) Humphry Sinyal recently stated in Gorontalo.

        Indonesia is one of the world's largest maritime countries, with about 5.8 million square kilometers of marine territory. The state has beaches and coastal areas that stretch some 92 thousand kilometers, the world's second-longest coastline after Canada.

        Sail Indonesia is organized with the objective of improving the welfare of the local community residing in the areas where the event will be held and to attract foreign tourists.

        As part of the Sail Indonesia series, Sail Tomini will be the seventh event after Sail Bunaken in 2009, Sail Banda in 2010, Sail Wakatobi-Belitung in 2011, Sail Morotai in 2012, Sail Komodo in 2013, and Sail Raja Ampat in 2014.

        Based on the presidential decree on Sail Tomini 2015, the government has prepared 18 major programs and activities, according to Hasanuddin Atjo, the head of the Central Sulawesi maritime affairs and fisheries office.

        The scheduled programs and activities include free medical services for the public in Central Sulawesi, boat parade, parachuting, Nusantara Circle VI sailing event, kampong development movement, Nusantara youth sailing event, yacht rally, Tomini Batik expo, seminars on maritime affairs, and maritime research expedition.

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(f001/INE)