UNESCO tag for Toba Caldera to boost N Sumatra tourism by Fardah

Jakarta , July 22, 2020 (ANTARA) - Located in North Sumatra province, Lake Toba is the largest volcanic lake on Earth.

The ancient lake was formed as a result of a volcanic eruption 74 thousand years ago. The Toba eruption, which is the largest known volcanic event on the planet, produced a steep-walled caldera, which, over time, filled with water to form the largest of Indonesia’s lakes.

When viewed from space, the Toba caldera is one of the most striking volcanic craters on Earth, measuring an impressive 100 x 30 kilometers.

Lake Toba and Samosir Island, which is located in the middle of the huge caldera, offer a complete tourism package — with beautiful views, glimpses into the unique Batak culture and traditions, and an intriguing history.

The inclusion of the Tabo Caldera on the list of UNESCO Global Geoparks (UGGp) has been a proud moment for Indonesia. The inclusion was approved at the 209th Session of the UNESCO executive board in Paris, France, on July 2, 2020. Along with the Tabo Caldera, 15 other geoparks were also put on the UNESCO list, including the Cliffs of Fundy (Canada), Xiangxi (China), Hantangang (South Korea), Rio Coco (Nicaragua), and Granada (Spain).

"With this inscription, Indonesia can develop the Toba Caldera Geopark via the Global Geoparks Network and the Asia Pacific Geoparks Network, especially in connection with empowering local communities," Indonesian Ambassador to UNESCO, Arrmanatha Nasir, said in a statement released from Paris on July 8, 2020.

NIAS ISLAND PREPPED TO ENGAGE INTERNATIONAL SURFERS, TOURISTS by Fardah

Sabtu, 21 Sep 2019 11:09

Daerah : Jakarta

Jakarta (ANTARA) - With the international maritime event of Sail Nias 2019 being organized from July to September 2019, the government is stepping up the promotion of Nias Island as a surfing haven for international visitors.

The Indonesian government’s steadfastness to transform Nias into a global tourist destination gateway was echoed by Coordinating Maritime Affairs Minister Luhut Binsar Pandjaitan while officially opening Sail Nias at a peak ceremony held at the Teluk Dalam Seaport, South Nias District, North Sumatra Province, on Sept 14, 2019.

Various activities organized during the event included the Wonderful Nias Expo 2019, battleship parade, Nias Marathon, culinary bazaar, and traditional art and cultural performances.

Other activities comprised Wind Surfing and Sailing Contests, Free Diving Competition, Stone Jump Festival, Coffee Festival, Fishing Tournament, Wonderful Tourism Photo Expo, One Thousand Tents Festival, the Mt Sitoli cultural seminar, and Traditional Fishing Boat Parade, with the participation of some 100 fishermen boats.

A ceremonial stone jump tradition is the icon of Nias and has already gained popularity among travelers. The stone jump tradition was born along with the Nias War Dance. Since primeval times, tribes in Nias would oftentimes clash among themselves, and the chief (siulu) of every tribe trained their young members for war; stone jumping being part of the training.

The 2019 Sail Nias event involved four districts and a city on the island of Nias, specifically Gunungsitoli City and the districts of South Nias, West Nias, Nias, and North Nias.

It unveiled Nias Island as the best-kept secret of Indonesians to the world.  Among the top secrets of Nias Island is Sorake Beach, recognized as the second-best place to surf, after Hawaii.

Transforming Lake Toba into world-class tourist destination by Fardah

The huge Lake Toba and Samosir Island, lying at its center, offer a well-rounded tourism package incorporating scenic beauty, inimitable Batak culture and traditions, and captivating history.
Located in North Sumatra Province, Lake Toba is undoubtedly not just any ordinary lake but is the largest volcanic lake on Earth.
The ancient lake has been formed by a steep-walled caldera produced during the Toba volcano's eruption, the largest known volcanic eruption on the planet in the past two million years. The powerful eruption, an extremely rare event, is called a supervolcanic eruption.
When viewed from space, the Toba caldera is one of the most striking volcanic craters on Earth, measuring 100 x 30 kilometers.
After Lake Toba’s designation as a priority tourist destination, the Indonesian government has been developing various facilities and infrastructure to support the tourism industry in North Sumatra Province, where the ancient lake is located.
Investment for the development of Lake Toba, totaling Rp3.5 trillion, has been sourced from the State Budget (APBN), the president noted in a press statement released by the Presidential Secretariat.
The government is upbeat about attracting private investments valued at thrice to five times bigger than the government's investment for Lake Toba.

SAIL INDONESIA 2019 TO UNVEIL BEST SECRET OF INDONESIA: NIAS ISLAND

Kategori : National News (NAT)

Jumat, 14 Jun 2019 21:05

Daerah : Jakarta

By Fardah

Jakarta, 14/6 (Antara) -
Nias Island, located in North Sumatra Province and often considered the best kept secret of Indonesians, will be unveiled to the world at an international maritime event to be organized from July until September 2019.

Sail Nias, the 11th series of Sail Indonesia, will be opened at a ceremony in Teluk Dalam (Bay), South Nias, on September 14, 2019. Sail Indonesia is part of plans to accelerate the development of underdeveloped regions in Indonesia.

Various activities will be organized during the event, including Wonderful Nias Expo 2019, an international surfing contest, a battleship parade, Nias Marathon, a culinary bazaar, and traditional art and cultural performances.

Other activities will include Wind Surfing and Sailing Contests, Free Diving Competition, Stone Jump Festival, Traditional Fishing Boat Parade, Coffee Festival, Fishing Tournament, Wonderful Tourism Photo Expo, One Thousand Tents Festival, and the Mt Sitori cultural seminar.

At least 100 thousand Indonesian and foreign tourists are expected to come for Sail Nias, whose main activities will be held from September 10 to 14, according to Hidayati, head of the North Sumatra tourism office.
Sail Nias will offer an opportunity to promote Nias globally and boost the local economy, Zaman K. Mendrofa, a prominent figure, remarked recently.

MT SINABUNG'S HUGE ASH PLUME TRIGGERS PANIC AMONG KARO LOCALS by Fardah

Jakarta, Feb 21, 2018 (Antara) - Several elementary schools were closed, with students and others fleeing in fear of a huge ash plume engulfing the summit of Mount Sinabung that had erupted quite powerfully on February 19, 2018.

         The towering plume of ash turned the morning light into dark in five sub-districts, with a visibility level of some five meters only. No one was injured in the eruption, which was accompanied by multiple earthquakes.

         Several nearby villages experienced a shower of small rocks, while hot clouds, with temperatures ranging between 600 and 800 degrees Celsius, went down the slope at a distance of 4.9 kilometers.

         According to the Geological Disaster Mitigation and Volcanology Center, the latest eruption was the strongest to have occurred this year. 
   The volcanic ash affected regions around Mount Sinabung, including Simpang Empat Sub-district, Naman Teran, Payung, Tiga Nderket, and Munthe.

        The eruption sent an ash cloud more than five thousand meters (16 thousand feet) into the air, triggering panic among local inhabitants and tourists in the affected villages.

         No one was killed following the eruption of Mount Sinabung located in Karo District, North Sumatra Province, at 8:53 a.m. local time on Monday (Feb 19), Sutopo Purwo Nugroho, spokesman of the National Disaster Mitigation Agency (BNPB), noted in a statement.

         "People in the danger or red zones have all been evacuated to avoid the worst-case scenario," he remarked.

INVESTORS INTERESTED TO DEVELOP LAKE TOBA by Fardah

   Jakarta, Nov 22, 2017 - The North Sumatran provincial government has set an ambitious target of attracting at least one million foreign tourists to visit Lake Toba by 2019.

         The figure is nearly four folds higher that the number of tourists visiting Lake Toba in 2016, which was only 240 thousand. Until September this year, some 197 thousand tourists had visited the area.

         The target of tourist arrivals this year is set at 300 thousand, and next year it is 500 thousand.

         The target might be achievable, as Lake Toba is not just an ordinary water body but is the largest volcanic lake on Earth.

          Lake Toba and Samosir Island, which is located in the middle of the huge lake, offer a complete tourism package encompassing beautiful scenery, unique Batak culture and traditions, and intriguing history.

         The ancient lake was formed by a steep-walled caldera produced during the Toba volcano's eruption, the largest known volcanic eruption on the planet in the past two million years. The powerful eruption, an extremely rare event, is called a supervolcanic eruption.   
     When viewed from space, the Toba caldera is one of the most striking volcanic craters on Earth, measuring 100 kilometers (km) in length and 30 km in width.

         The local government hopes that the Toba Caldera Geopark would be inscribed on the UNESCO's World Heritage List in 2017.

         Moreover, Lake Toba has been designated by the central government as a priority tourist destination, along with nine other tourist attractions, or popularly called as "10 New Bali."

NEW INFRASTRUCTURE PROVIDES BETTER MOBILITY TO N SUMATRA PEOPLE by Fardah

Jakarta, Oct 19, 2017 (Antara) - North Sumatra has enjoyed rapid infrastructure development over the last several years, thanks to the economic policy of President Joko Widodo (Jokowi) administration to improve the mobility of the people and make Lake Toba in the province a world-class tourist destination.

        Various infrastructure projects, such as constructions of airports, highway, toll roads, and seaports, have been underway to improve connectivity in North Sumatra.

        On Oct 13, Jokowi inaugurated the Medan-Binjai and Kualanamu Airport-Sei Rampah toll road sections, spanning 52 kilometers, in Kualanamu, North Sumatra.

         Jokowi, in the presence of State Enterprises Minister Rini Soemarno, Public Works and Housing Minister Basoeki Hadimoeljono, Cabinet Secretary Pramono Anung and North Sumatra Governor Erry Nuradi, pressed a siren to mark the inauguration of the two toll road sections and expressed hope that the operation of the two toll road sections would increase the mobility of people and goods.

        He believed that if the mobility of goods increased and the transportation cost declined, then the cost of goods would be cheaper.

         Owing to high prices of goods, Indonesia has lost to other countries that offer lower prices, thanks to their solid infrastructure, he noted.

         He added that the construction of some toll road sections in North Sumatra has not been completed due to land clearance problems.

         The toll road sections include the 3.3-kilometer Tanjung Mulia- Sei Semayang section and the 10.15-kilometer Sei Rampah-Tebing Tinggi section.

ALL REFUGEES DISPLACED BY MOUNT SINABUNG ERUPTION TO BE RELOCATED BY 2018 by Fardah

Jakarta, Oct 19, 2017 (Antara) - Some 2,117 families, being displaced by the eruption of Mount Sinabung in North Sumatra Province since 2010, are still waiting to be relocated to permanent resettlement areas. 
    Normal life of these people has been thrown out of gear. They could neither make a normal living nor could their children attend schools since their villages had been destroyed by the volcanic eruptions that has been going on and off.
       Having been inactive for four centuries, Mount Sinabung has been coming back to life since 2010 and has been erupting sporadically. 
   Inhabitants of 10 villages located within a radius of three to five kilometers from the mountain top are waiting to be relocated to new settlement areas in three stages. 
   More than 30 thousand people across 34 villages were displaced from September 2013 to February 2014 as a result of the eruptions of the 2,600-meter-high mountain.
         President Joko Widodo (Jokowi) had signed a Presidential Decree No. 21 of 2015 on a task force for accelerating the relocation of victims affected by the eruptions. 
    In the first stage of the relocation program, 370 families, comprising of 1,212 people, were relocated to Siosar village, Merek sub-district, Karo District, in 2015.
         They had previously lived in three villages, namely Sukameriah, Bekerah, and Simacem, which are located on the slope of Mount Sinabung.
         Jokowi visited the natural disaster's victims in Siosar for the second time on Oct 14, 2017, after his first visit two years ago.
       He had held dialogs with several villagers and asked them whether they had planted and harvested crops, and they responded that indeed they had planted potatoes.