WEST NUSA TENGGARA TO BOOST YACHT TOURISM by Fardah

Jakarta, Dec 22, 2016 (Antara) - West Nusa Tenggara (NTB) Province is blessed with beautiful white-sand beaches, forest-covered mountainous areas and a distinct culture. The province comprises islands of Lombok, Sumbawa and hundreds of smaller ones.   
   Located not far from Bali and scenically no less beautiful than Bali, NTB attracted 2.25 million tourists in 2012, 2.49 million in 2013, and 2.51 million in 2014.

        The NTB administration has set a target of attracting three million tourists in 2016, and is expected to generate Rp750 billion in revenue from tourism.  Besides, the province also hopes to attract 3.5 million visits by 2017 and four million by 2018. 
   The target has been incorporated into the provincial Medium Term Development Plan 2018.

        Lalu Moh Faozal, head of the NTB Tourism and Culture Office said recently that the target was determined after taking into account the number of tourists staying at hotels and those who visited the region via any entry point, be it the Lembar seaport in West Lombok, Sape seaport in Bima, Bangsal seaport in North Lombok, or the Lombok International Airport in Central Lombok district.

        "Those are the mainstays through which tourist enter West Nusa Tenggara," Faozal added.

        The number of visitors coming to the province for Meetings, Incentives, Conferences and Exhibitions (MICE) was also factored in while setting the target.

       "Currently, the number of tourists has reached 2.9 million. Before the close of the year, we are optimistic that the target of three million tourists will be achieved," he assured.

        He added that 2016 turned out to be the year of tourists for West Nusa Tenggara as hotel occupancy in the province rose to 75-80 percent.

        West Nusa Tenggara's success in representing Indonesia in three different categories at the World Halal Tourism Award (WHTA) 2016 in Abu Dhabi, the United Arab Emirates, also contributed to the increase in the number of tourists.

        At the WHTA event, Novotel Lombok Resort and Villas won the award in the World's Best Halal Beach Resort category while www.wonderfulllomboksumbawa.com won in the World's Best Halal Tourism Website category. The Sembalun Village Region won the award in the World's Best Honeymoon Destination Halal category.

        Having a number of islands, NTB has prioritized the development of infrastructure such as seaports and airports to help support its tourism industry.

        Gilimas Seaport, for instance, is currently being expanded to facilitate passenger and cargo transport. Besides, the expansion of the Gilimas post is designed to expand the capacity of its cargo terminal.

        The expansion of the ports in West Nusa Tenggara would increase logistic capacity, and improve the logistics as well as transport system in the region, according to Ridwan Djamaluddin, Deputy III for Infrastructure Coordination at the office of Coordinating Minister for Maritime Affairs. 
   In addition to the expansion work at the 100-hectare Gilimas port expected to be completed in one and a half years, the state-owned seaport operator Pelindo III will also build a yacht marina in Gilimas.

        "We will build a marina that can accommodate 50 yachts from various countries," General Manager of the West Lombok chapter of Pelindo III Baharuddin said on Dec 21, 2016.

        State Enterprises Minister Rini Soemarno was scheduled to lay the first cornerstone of the marina construction on Dec 22.

        The marina construction, including land acquisition for the project, is estimated to cost Rp1.2 trillion.

        West Lombok needs a marina for yachts because the district is frequently visited by foreign tourists using yachts.

         Some 70 percent of Indonesia's territory is water and it has 17,480 islands and a 92,000-kilometer long beach and coastal areas, the second longest after Canada. It also has around 5.8 million square kilometers of marine territory.

              As the world's largest archipelagic nation, Indonesia has identified marine tourism as having a huge potential, but it has so far been overlooked. 
       The Indonesian authorities have eased entry permits for yachts in certain seaports, hoping that their yachting tourism will increase by the year 2019.

             According to Tourism Minister Arief Yahya, they are hoping to have 8,000 yachts near their shores by the year 2019, including foreign yachts.

             According to the Yacht Forum held in Jakarta last year, the Tourism Ministry is expecting 4,000 yachts by the year 2018.

             The minister stated that the government has planned  construction of some 100 marina infrastructures designed for maritime tourism across the country.

    (f001/INE/B003)
EDITED BY INE

(T.F001/A/BESSR/Bustanuddin) 22-12-2016