President Joko Widodo during one of his speech

President Jokowi : Tourism Promotion for New Normal Era Needed

President Joko Widodo (Jokowi) requested the Minister of Tourism and Creative Economy Wishnutama Kusubandio to prepare a domestic tourism promotion program to face the new normal future. The program must focus on promoting local and safe products amid the corona virus pandemic.

" We need to prepare special strategies in promotion in the new normal era. Focus first to encourage domestic tourism, domestic tourists," Jokowi said in a video conference on Thursday (5/28).

Jokowi reminded his subordinate to also prepare a strict medical protocols so can minimize the risk of corona virus transmission in the tourist area. Therefore, he request for new standards and trials before the tourism sector truly opened to the public.

"It needs massive socialization, followed by trials and simulations. It also needs to be monitored so that health protocol standards are implemented in the field," he said.

He said the risk of reopening the tourism sector is actually quite large. The reason is, if there is a corona virus local transmission in the tourism spot, the impact will be very bad for the tourism industry.

"Once there is an imported case and then there is a health impact, then the bad image of tourism can be attached and it will be difficult for us to fix it again. Therefore this must be calculated correctly on the ground," Jokowi explained.

Jokowi said the government would first see how other countries began to open up their tourism sector to become an example. Thus, it can be considered by the government in preparing a new normal scenario in the tourism sector.

"For comparison, I have request to see the benchmarks in other countries that have prepared new normal conditions in the tourism sector," he said.

According to Jokowi, people choice of a vacation place in the new normal period will change from before the pandemic. People will prefer to go to a quiet place to have vacation in order to reduce the risk of corona virus transmission.

"Holiday references will shift to alternate vacations that not gathering many people at once such ad solo travel tours, wellness tours, and also virtual tourism and staycation," Jokowi said.

Source: http://shorturl.at/cuEQ2