Jakarta, (Antara) - The visa-free policy launched by the Indonesian government is expected to have a significant impact on the growth of tourism following an increase in the number of tourist arrivals from several countries.
President Joko Widodo, better known as Jokowi, has signed a Presidential Decree No. 104/2015 on a visit visa exemption for the citizens of 75 countries in his efforts to boost foreign tourist arrivals and spur the nation's economy.
According to the Presidential Decree, the visit visa exemption applies to foreign nationals arriving in Indonesia as tourists, or to run government errands, to study, for business or social and cultural purposes, or just as a stopover while continuing their travel to other countries.
"The visa-free policy that I have signed is expected to have a positive impact on the country's tourism industry, and the major increase in tourism can generate fresh revenue for the state," President Jokowi has stated.
However, the president noted that breakthrough efforts were still necessary to achieve a significant growth in the country's tourism industry.
Tourism observer Made Sudana remarked in Denpasar on Monday that the presence of haze engulfing areas of Sumatra has not affected the number of foreign tourists visiting Indonesia, especially to the island resort of Bali.
"Even in unfavorable conditions due to the haze, the number of foreign tourists coming to Bali continues to grow, especially from countries that have been offered visa-free facility, such as India, China, New Zealand, France, the United States, and several others," Sudana noted.
As a tour operator in Bali, Made Sudana said he welcomed the government's visa-free policy to increase the number of foreign tourist arrivals through the main entrance of the Ngurah Rai Airport and other airports in the Indonesian archipelago.
In the meantime, the Taiwanese government also positively welcomed President Jokowi's visa-free policy for the citizens of 75 countries, including Taiwan.
"Of course, we welcome the visa exemption. For us, Indonesia is our best partner in Asia," Chang Liang Jen, the head of the Taipei Economic and Trade Office, remarked in Jakarta last Thursday.
He noted that visa exemption may increase the number of tourist visits from Taiwan to Indonesia.
During the January-December 2014 period, the number of Taiwanese tourists visiting Indonesia reached 170,301, an increase of 2.36 percent compared to the same period in the previous year.(*)
