Government appoints agency to promote tourism in U.S.

JAKARTA (JP): The government appointed on Thursday Los Angeles-based Indonesian Council of Tourism Partners (ICTP) to promote the country's tourism in the United States and Canada.

The council, established in September by mostly Indonesian hotels, airlines and tour operators, replaced the government- sponsored Indonesian Tourism Promotion Center (ITPC) which was closed down in 1998 at the height of the economic crisis.

Udin Syaifuddin, deputy for marketing and international relations at the Ministry of Culture and Tourism, said after signing the two-year agreement that the government did not have sufficient funds to wholly finance tourism promotional activities abroad.

"This is an effort to regain the U.S. and Canadian market which declined last year," he said.

The government has proposed allocating US$200,000 (Rp 1.9 billion) to fund the council, he said, adding, however, that the budget had not been approved by the House of Representatives.

The government closed down all its tourism promotion centers abroad in 1998 because it could not continue to financially support their operations. Still short of money today, the government has turned to the private sector in Indonesia and abroad to form partnerships with which to conduct promotions.

In September, the government appointed Kinki, a Japanese travel agency, to promote Indonesia's tourism in Japan, Udin said. The government also hoped to establish similar partnerships in Europe later this year, he added.

Signing on behalf of ICTP on Thursday were joint chiefs, Thomas J. Steinmetz from the United States and B. Mudi Astuti from Indonesia.

Steinmetz said the council, the operation of which would be funded by its members, would ask tour operators in the United States to include Indonesia in their holiday packages.

The council will also approach American airlines to fly direct to Indonesia, launch media campaigns and conduct road shows in major cities in the United States and Canada such as Chicago, San Francisco, New York, Los Angeles and Vancouver.

The council has opened a website (www.ictpindonesia.com), toll free and fax services to acquaint Americans and Canadians with Indonesia's tourism potentials.

The number of American visitors declined sharply last year because the State Department repeatedly issued travel advisories to its citizens against visiting Indonesia because of the political upheavals and violence.

Mudi said the establishment of the council was timely to help change the perception Americans have of Indonesia. (05)