Tourist arrivals growth rate down in August

JAKARTA (JP): Minister of Tourism, Post and Telecommunications Joop Ave expressed concern here yesterday over the slowdown in the number of tourist arrivals in August, traditionally a peak season for foreign visitors.

Speaking at a two-day meeting held by the Indonesian Hotel and Restaurant Association's board of executives, Joop said that the growth rate of the number of tourist arrivals, which reached 20 percent in the first semester of this year, fell to 13 percent in August. He did not give any revenue figures.

Data at the Directorate General of Tourism shows that the number of foreign tourists visiting Indonesia reached 290,009 (generating US$354.94 million) in January, 305,166 ($373.5 million) in February, 352,254 ($431.13 million) in March, 344,051 ($421.09 million) in April, 335,735 ($410.91 million) in May, 360,969 ($441.79 million) in June, 378,157 ($462.83 million) in July and 376,891 ($461.28 million) in August.

"This is very unusual because for the last 20 years, the second half of the year has been high season for the tourist industry, with growth during the July-December period almost certainly higher than that of the January-June period," Joop said, expressing his hope that the situation would improve this month and in the months to come.

Asked about the reason for the decline, Joop said he could not make an assessment right away. "It's only been three weeks (since August)," he said.

He refused to confirm whether the situation was related to the spell of political unrest in Jakarta last July.

"That may be your opinion, but we still have to make an assessment on the issue. The important thing is that I have disclosed this matter... The situation is real and we need to work hard to offset the growth decline," he said.

The July 27 incident was sparked by the takeover of the Indonesian Democratic Party's headquarters by a rival faction within the party. The incident led to the burning of a number of buildings, hundreds of injuries and the death of five people.

Joop said that his staff would reevaluate the tourism figures, which he called "absurd".

"The number of foreign travelers to Bali certainly exploded in August," he said,

However, the number declined at six of the country's entrance gateways, he said.

The six other major entrance points in Indonesia are the international airports in Medan, North Sumatra; Batam, Riau; Jakarta; Surabaya, East Java; Manado, North Sulawesi; and Entikong, West Kalimantan.

Joop was confident that the slowdown would not affect the country's revenue target in the tourist industry this year.

According to earlier data, the number of foreign visitors increased from 4.01 million in 1994 to 4.3 million in 1995, while the revenue earned increased from US$4.7 billion to $5.2 billion

By year's end, the government hopes to attract up to 5.05 million international visitors and revenue of $6.27 billion. (pwn)