Tourism Minister: Tourism Strengthens Indonesia's Global Competitiveness

Tourism Minister Widiyanti Putri Wardhana has stated that the performance of Indonesia’s tourism sector continues to show positive growth, marked by an increase in foreign tourist arrivals, domestic tourist movements, and the hosting of various events that reflect the sector’s competitiveness and resilience amid global dynamics. Widiyanti said these achievements strengthen optimism towards the tourism sector as a leading sector in driving business growth and the people’s economy. “The tourism sector is expected to make an increasingly significant contribution to national economic growth,” she said in a written statement in Jakarta on Thursday (16/7/2026). Widiyanti explained that foreign tourist arrivals in May 2026 reached 1.38 million visits, an increase of 5.83 per cent compared to May 2025. Cumulatively, the number of foreign tourist arrivals up to May 2026 reached 6.07 million, growing by 7.68 per cent compared to the same period the previous year. She said the growth was driven by the Ministry of Tourism’s strategy focusing on strengthening short- and medium-haul markets. The positive trend in foreign tourist visits was also maintained amid geopolitical dynamics in the Middle East region. “There was also an increase in domestic tourist trips, which serve as the main pillar of domestic tourism movement,” Widiyanti continued. Based on data, domestic tourist trips in May 2026 grew by 8.69 per cent year-on-year. Cumulatively, domestic tourist trips up to May 2026 reached 523.22 million trips, an increase of 2.86 per cent compared to the same period the previous year. Widiyanti noted that positive achievements were also seen in the comparison between foreign tourist arrivals and outbound trips by Indonesian citizens. The number of foreign tourist visits was recorded as 0.83 million higher than the number of Indonesian citizens travelling abroad. This surplus increased by 15.48 per cent year-on-year. According to Widiyanti, this achievement reflects the growing contribution of the tourism sector to the country’s foreign exchange earnings. The Ministry of Tourism will continue to maintain the growth trend through strengthening connectivity, improving destination quality, hosting events, and more targeted promotion. “Thus, the tourism sector can make an increasingly significant contribution to national economic growth,” she said. To support this contribution, Widiyanti added, the Ministry of Tourism is implementing five flagship programmes: enhancing tourism safety, developing tourism villages, promoting quality tourism, the ‘Event by Indonesia’ initiative, and Tourism 5.0. These five flagship programmes will continue to be accelerated to build a future for Indonesian tourism that is increasingly inclusive, high-quality, sustainable, and delivers tangible impacts for the community. In her presentation, Widiyanti also highlighted the improvement in Indonesia’s tourism competitiveness, particularly in the Muslim-friendly travel segment. Indonesia won the Muslim Friendly Destination of the Year award at the 2026 Global Muslim Travel Index Awards. “This award is important because the Muslim-friendly travel market is one of the fastest-growing tourism segments,” she said. The Global Muslim Travel Index projects that the number of Muslim travellers will reach 208 million in 2026 and increase to 262 million by 2030, with a market value of 310 billion US dollars. According to Widiyanti, Indonesia successfully climbed three places from its previous ranking. This improvement reflects Indonesia’s consistency in building a quality, inclusive, and globally competitive Muslim-friendly tourism ecosystem. “This achievement is inseparable from the various efforts of the Ministry of Tourism together with partners, including the Halal Product Assurance Agency (BPJPH) and Bank Indonesia,” she said.