Government pushes for MSMEs to join Bintan tourism supply chain

The Ministry of Micro, Small, and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs) is encouraging local businesses in Bintan Regency, Riau Islands, to become more involved in the area’s tourism industry supply chain in order to widen the economic benefits of the sector’s growth. Ministry Staff Expert for Law and Public Policy Reghi Perdana stated that the increase in tourist visits must be accompanied by a greater role for MSMEs within the tourism ecosystem, from the provision of local products and culinary offerings to souvenirs and other industry needs.

"Tourism delivers a sustainable economic impact for MSMEs as part of its ecosystem. Hotels, resorts, restaurants, souvenir centres, and the organisation of various events are expanding spaces for marketing local MSME products," Reghi said during a working visit by Commission VII of the House of Representatives to Bintan Regency on Thursday. He noted that the success of tourism development should not only be measured by rising visitor numbers, but also by the extent of economic value added that the community can enjoy through MSME participation.

Data from the Bintan Regency government shows the local tourism sector holds significant potential, with 55 hotels and resorts and 219 tourist destinations. These destinations comprise 131 natural attractions, 54 culinary spots, 14 religious sites, 10 souvenir centres, five cultural attractions, three educational sites, and two agricultural tourism locations. This potential is supported by growing visitor numbers. As of May 2026, foreign tourist arrivals reached 109,090, an increase of 38.5 percent compared to the same period the previous year, while domestic tourist visits totalled 339,425, growing by 15.17 percent.

Reghi said the increase in economic opportunities from the tourism sector must be matched by strengthening MSME capacity, including product quality, business capability, and competitiveness. "MSMEs need to continuously improve product quality, business capacity, and competitiveness so they can optimally seize these opportunities while becoming an important part of the tourism industry supply chain," he said. To strengthen the MSME ecosystem, the ministry is expanding empowerment programmes through business mentoring, certification, financing access, digitalisation, training, business incubation, and the development of an Integrated Business Service Centre (PLUT) in Bintan Regency.

Bintan Regent Roby Kurniawan said the local government is continuously improving the competitiveness of the tourism area through infrastructure development, promotion, human resource quality enhancement, and the development of community-based sustainable tourism destinations. He expressed hope that central government support would continue to be strengthened so that Bintan becomes more competitive as a leading national and international tourism destination. "With better infrastructure, promotion, and accessibility, we are optimistic that the tourism sector will provide even greater economic benefits for the community," Roby said.