Ministry Making Efforts to Lure more Tourists

Jakarta (Antara) - The Ministry of Tourism is making every effort to attract more foreign tourists to visit Indonesia and to improve the tourism industry in the country, according to Tourism Minister Arief Yahya. "In our efforts to attract more foreign tourists, we are going to start an e-office in the Ministry of Tourism, develop an integrated zone, revise the working plan and budget of state ministries/institutions, hold the traditional culinary tourism week, and initiate online clearance approval for the Indonesian territory," the minister stated here on Tuesday. Yahya noted that his ministry will also provide visa-free short visit facility to the tourists from Japan, China, South Korea, Australia, and Russia; launch the branding "Wonderful Indonesia" and e-tourism, Travel Blogger Award, and Indonesian Film Festival 2014. "We also organized the Indonesian Fashion Forward (IFF) program and the digital book program and improved the website 'Indonesiakreatif.Net' as a means of communication for creative people in Indonesia," the minister remarked. He noted that international yachts will also be allowed to enter Indonesian waters in a bid to develop marine tourism in the country. He emphasized that promotional activities will also be intensified through online media such as mobile apps, digital campaigns, interactive campaigns, and viral marketing (Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, blogs, among others). (*)