Indonesia Tourism Minister Sandiaga Salahuddin Uno said that the move would boost domestic consumption, attract investment and support the development of the digital economy, he pointed out, adding,
In a bid to ramp up tourism and spur the economy, the Indonesian Ministry of Tourism and Creative Economy has announced visa-free entries for travellers from India and 19 other countries.
Making the announcement on Saturday, Indonesia Tourism Minister Sandiaga Salahuddin Uno said, “The ministry proposed 20 countries with the highest (number of) foreign tourists, except for those with existing visa exemptions.”
“The provision is expected to increase foreign tourist visits which will generate a multiplier effect,” he added.
He also said that the move would boost domestic consumption, attract investment and support the development of the digital economy.
"We are targeting quality tourists, especially those with longer stays and higher spending in the local economy," he pointed out.
China, India among countries named
The 20 countries include Australia, China, India, South Korea, the United States, the United Kingdom, France and Germany.
Indonesia is the latest Southeast Asian nation after Thailand and Malaysia to declare free visas to tourists from selected countries as they jostle to recover their economy quickly from the after effects of the COVID-19 pandemic.
In 2019, a year before lockdown was announced, more than 16.1 million foreign nationals visited Indonesia. This then fell to just over 4 million in 2020 and then down to 1.6 million in 2021.
However, from October this year, Indonesia has been witnessing a slight recovery, with the country receiving 9.49 million foreign footfalls, which is double than the 5.47 million people that visited the country last year.
But this is still less than the more than the country’s pre-pandemic peak, however.
Indians make up for second-largest tourist arrivals
According to Statista, a data-providing platform, as of March 2023, Australia was the largest feeder market for direct foreign tourist arrivals to Bali, Indonesia, with 260,000 visits.
Indian tourists made up the second-largest group of arrivals to Bali, with 77.88 thousand arrivals.
Bali is arguably Indonesia's most popular tourist destination and saw a total of almost 6.3 million direct foreign tourist arrivals before the COVID-19 pandemic in 2019.
Article edited by C Krishnasai for wionews.com
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