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INDONESIA’S Ministry of Tourism and Creative Economy said the Work From Bali (WFB) policy will be launched in the third quarter or July 2021 in stages. This effort is expected to accelerate the recovery of the tourism sector and the creative economy in Bali.
According to the Minister of Tourism and Creative Economy, Sandiaga Uno during the Weekly Press Briefing at the Sapta Pesona Building, Jakarta, Monday (6/7) explaining that the WFB policy initiated by the government is based on comprehensive data. Since the first quarter of the Ministry of Tourism and Creative Economy conducted WFB or to be precise in January 2021, the number of visits to I Gusti Ngurah Rai International Airport has reached 2,000-2,500 visits.
“We are moving with data, domesyic tourists who came to I Gusti Ngurah Rai in January 2,500 visits. And per day, visits to Bali increased 3 times to 7,000-7,500. In the first quarter, Bali was still minus 9.8% with national economic growth that had improved. But Bali is still contracting too deeply. We will continue to prepare this policy in the third quarter, and we will roll it out in stages starting with the Ministries and Institutions,” he said.
Sandiaga Uno explained that the WFB concept could certainly be applied to other tourist destinations in Indonesia. Such as Work from Lombok, Work From Bajo, Work From Toba, Work Form Likupang, Work From Borobudur, and so on. The concept follows a new pattern of working habits or remote working which was popularized with the concept of digital nomads.
“The Special Region of Yogyakarta (DIY) is also developing a similar concept, it can even serve as a pilot, because in the first quarter, DIY’s economic growth could be plus 6%. The key to its success is not only beautiful natural beauty and good management. But also a qualified internet network service. We hope that other work from anywhere programs will be born,” Sandiaga noted.
Then, Sandiaga Uno also explained, the room occupancy rate for star hotels in Bali in April 2021 was recorded at 10.09%, down 0.15 compared to the room occupancy rate in March 2021 (m-t-m) which was recorded at 10.24%. The average length of stay of foreign and domestic guests at five-star hotels in Bali in April 2021 was 2.15 days. This WFB is estimated to be able to increase the hotel occupancy rate by up to 30%.
“We also encourage national and international organizations with the implementation of strict protocols to organize MICE activities in Bali. Last week we finished our first activity in Bali, the Arabian Travel Mart (ATM), which was held on a hybrid basis. And at the end of this week, the plan is to hold a Bali Beyond Travel Fair (BBTF),” he said.
Sandiaga hopes that with the health protocol guidelines for the implementation of the MICE event, all of them can encourage Bali to rise again. Moreover, the data on the number of COVID-19 transmissions throughout the Province of Bali is very good. In the last few days, the number of COVID-19 transmissions in Bali has been below 100 or 28 new cases,” he stated.
However, when he asked about the Travel Corridor Arrangement (TCA), Sandiaga also ensured that his readiness and targets were still on the track. However, the opening of the TCA which is targeted by President Joko Widodo in July 2021, must consider the potential for transmission of COVID-19 both at home and abroad because there are several other countries experiencing spikes in transmission cases such as Malaysia, Singapore and Taiwan.
“Hopefully this TCA will be on time, we will continue to coordinate with related ministries/agencies such as the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the Ministry of Law and Human Rights, the Ministry of Health, the COVID-19 Task Force, and the Bali Provincial Government. This is what we need to respond to properly, in the third quarter we can conduct trials with foreign tourists with charter flights, we continue to finalize, of course with the implementation of health protocols and very strict and disciplined arrival requirements, vaccination is one of the requirements for foreign tourists come to Bali,” he added.
In addition, Minister Sandiaga also continues to encourage the vaccination program. Because in order to implement the TCA program, the vaccination target in Bali must also be achieved. The target is that 6 million vaccines will be distributed, meaning that 3 million people in Bali will be vaccinated. The vaccination program continues to be boosted because Bali is the declared priority province.
“Indeed, in July-August 2021 there is a need for a vaccine, that is what we will also increase and prioritize. Precisely the presence of the State Civil Apparatus with the WFB program can increase discipline in the application of strict and disciplined health protocols followed by all tourism and creative economy players in Bali. So that it can revive the Balinese economy which is a symbol of the recovery of tourism and the national creative economy,” he concluded. [traveltext.id]
