Tourist industry in Bali reaches saturation point

By Rini Utami

DENPASAR, Bali (Antara): The word Bali usually conjures up beautiful landscape, myriad Hindu temples, elaborate religious rituals, dances and pristine beaches.

All of these natural and cultural attractions have lured domestic and foreign visitors to the tourist island of Bali.

But, nobody realizes that the fast growth of the tourist industry, which has become the major source of livelihood of nearly 80 percent of its society, is now approaching its point of saturation.

The local people have started to worry over the present tourism development policy which places emphasis on the building of tourist facilities and infrastructure. No limits have been imposed so far to the development of tourism in the province.

Bali's tourism development has lowered the quality of the environment as well the island's cultural assets, its main trademark.

Nyoman Erawan, the advisory member of the Study on Cumulative Environmental Impact (SOCEI) in Denpasar, explained that the tourism industry in Bali has continued to grow substantially since the launching of the first five-year development plan (Pelita I) in l969.

"In terms of quality, Bali is now facing various environmental problems as well as cultural degradation," warned Nyoman, who holds a doctorate degree in tourism from the University of Gajah Mada in Yogyakarta.

He said that inadequate development planning worsened by the implementation of regional autonomy, has created a lot of problems for Bali.

The provincial government tends to exploit its tourist attractions, natural and cultural resources to get as much foreign exchange as possible to add to the provincial revenue, Nyoman explained.

"They (provincial officials) never think about the capacity of the island's natural environment," he added.

In the last three decades, the development of tourism in Bali has been focused only in the province's capital of Denpasar and its adjacent areas like Badung regency, Kuta, Sanur, Nusa Dua and Gianyar where the hotel and restaurant industry has flourished.

Other areas, especially the northern and western part of the island have been almost untouched by the tourism industry.

As a result, the revenue received from each regency is uneven. Badung regency, for instance, contributes around 89.16 percent of the total revenue, compared to Jembrana, West Bali, which only provides 1.65 percent.

"If the province continues to develop its tourism industry using this old paradigm, Bali will likely experience serious setbacks," said Nyoman.

Such a development policy will accelerate the current environmental damage which will in turn affect tourism in general. The environmental damage that affects beaches, soil and the decrease in the quality of clean water will surely be an obstacle in luring visitors.

Nyoman, a lecturer at the School of Economics at Udayana University in Denpasar, also encouraged all stakeholders in the island's tourism industry to change their frame of mind.

The new paradigm of tourism development should involve all parties including the government, investors, and the community.

"Any tourism policy should be community-based and encourage sustainable development," he noted.

The community must be involved in each of the stages -- planning, implementation and supervision.

There are some obstacles in implementing the new paradigm. Not all related parties understand the concept. The local authorities lack of political will is also a handicap.

Shortage of funds and a lack of capable human resources have also hampered the implementation of sustainable tourism development projects.

To overcome these problems, he urged the provincial government and local tourism authority to set up a Sustainable Tourism Development Board to provide a forum for each related party to voice its own concerns.