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TOURISM And Creative Economy Ministry appreciates the high awareness of the people of the Special Region of Yogyakarta and Central Java in implementing Cleanliness, Healthy, Safety and Environmental Sustainability (CHSE) based health protocols in everyday life, especially in tourist destinations in entering new habitual adaptations.
According to the Expert Staff for Sustainable Development and Conservation at the Ministry of Tourism, Frans Teguh, said the people of Yogyakarta and Central Java have high social awareness in implementing health protocols such as maintaining distance, washing hands, and wearing masks as a measure to prevent the COVID-19 pandemic.
“I appreciate and ensure that people in Yogyakarta and Central Java have responded with local wisdom and shared awareness in implementing health protocols,” he said.
Frans said, what the people of Yogyakarta and Central Java had done in entering the era of adaptation to new habits was a reflection that collaboration from various parties such as community members, workers in the tourism and creative economy sectors, tourism destination managers, and local governments was the main thing in reviving them in tourism sector.
“With collaboration and good tourism governance, we are sure to be able to restore the trust of tourists and increase the tourism potential of a destination and create an experience that will leave an impression on the hearts of tourists. So, they will stay longer in tourist destinations and will always return there,” Frans noted.
Meanwhile, the Head of the Yogyakarta Provincial Tourism Office, Singgih Raharjo, explained that the tourism office did not close tourist destinations. However, the closure of these destinations is consciously carried out by the tourist destination managers.
“The people of Yogyakarta have some kind of social capital, so they limit their visits to tourist destinations at the start of the COVID-19 pandemic and destination managers also close the locations they manage without any orders from the provincial government. In addition, various villages in Yogyakarta also restrict access to entry. the area independently,” Singgih added.
This is supported by the Yogyakarta Provincial Government’s policy which limits the number of tourist visits. One of them is by refusing tour groups traveling by tour buses.
Singgih also said that his party has compiled various regulations related to health protocols that must be applied by every tourism actor and tourist who comes to visit Yogyakarta. This rule is known as “Pranatan Anyar Plesiran Jogja”.
“We compiled this protocol together with elements of district/city government and tourism actors association. We have also documented these rules and are used by all associations and managers of tourist destinations,” he said.
Singgih also explained that not all tourist destinations in Yogyakarta are open to tourists. Only destinations that have passed the health protocol implementation trial with permission from the Yogyakarta COVID-19 Handling Task Force Team and the local government and have received the “Jogja Clean & Safe” placard.
On the occasion, Singgih also mentioned that the Yogyakarta Government is trying to form a digital ecosystem in the tourism sector and the creative economy by launching the “visiting jogja” application. “So through this application tourists can make hotel reservations and payments and access various data and information about tourist destinations in Yogyakarta,” he noticed.
In addition, Singgih said that his party has empowered local tourists through the #DiJogjaAja program. According to him, this empowerment is because many residents from various regions in Yogyakarta visit tourist destinations in other areas without leaving the Yogyakarta area. [traveltext.id/photo special]]
