Bird flu won't affect tourism: Minister

Bird flu won't affect tourism: Minister

The government remains upbeat that the country's tourism sector
will be little affected by the bird flu outbreak, the tourism
minister says.

Jero Wacik said on Sunday the year's foreign tourist arrival
target would remain unchanged at about six million visitors
despite concerns about the effects on the industry of the avian
influenza outbreak.

"I don't think bird flu will hurt tourism. This is because the
virus is not transmitted from humans (to humans) but from birds.
Therefore, we shouldn't worry about it," Jero said quoted by
Antara in Padang, West Sumatra.

Jero said he was optimistic the Ministry of Agriculture and
the Ministry of Health would be able to contain the virus.

Six million foreign tourists would bring in US$5.8 billion in
foreign exchange to the country.

Last year, foreign tourist arrivals reached around 5.3 million
visitors, who spent about $5 billion, data from the Central
Statistics Agency (BPS) says.

For this year, the government is targeting more tourists from
China, India and the Middle East.

Starting Aug. 1, the government will provide a visa on arrival
facility for tourists from these regions. -- JP