Vying for a share of tourists during hard times in ASEAN

Grace Emilia, Contributor, Yogyakarta

It seems pretty incongruent, the contrast between the glamor of the tourist industry and the current dire situation in Indonesia where about 30 percent of children were badly malnourished in 2001.

This was the finding of a report on the condition of Indonesian children that was jointly presented recently by the United Nations Development Program (UNDP), the National Development Planning Agency, and the Central Bureau of Statistics (The Jakarta Post, 22/01/02).

So it is easy to be cynical when we see the government spending a minimum of US$42.5 million on hosting a high-profile event like the Royal ASEAN Tourism Forum (ATF) in Yogyakarta from Jan. 21 to Jan. 28, 2002. So much money for just a few days.

Is this really a correct strategy given the present situation in the country?

Imtiaz Muqbil, a senior tourism analyst, who is also the executive editor of the Bangkok-based Travel Impact Newswire, says that before 1997, Indonesia was a major competitor for Thailand as it attracted many tourists. Also it had a lot of diversity and was quite attractive to investment from Hong Kong and Singapore.

But now Thailand has far surpassed Indonesia in terms of tourist arrivals and capital gains.

"The main difference between Thailand and Indonesia is that Thailand does not have any political, ethnic and religious problems at the moment. So it is absolutely critical for Indonesia to first sort out its internal problems so that it no longer gets bad headlines and bad coverage on television.

"As long as the problems continue, Thailand will always get more tourists than Indonesia. So no matter what strategy Indonesia pursues, the results can never be as good as they otherwise would have been," says Muqbil.

For the time being, Muqbil sees the word-of-mouth method as being the best way to entice tourists back to Indonesia.

"Those people are the best ambassadors for Indonesia. When they tell their families and friends (about Indonesia), they will be trusted more than the journalists." Muqbil added.

However useful this method is, Muqbil also says that continual marketing efforts to project a good image are still of the utmost necessity.

"So, having this ATF is good for Indonesia as key tourism people from all over the world are coming and can see for themselves what is going on in the country." concludes Muqbil.

Discussions on how to promote the ASEAN countries as safe and interesting destinations, and the action plan for the implementation of its conclusions were also the top priorities discussed during the NTO (National Tourist Organization) meeting held from Jan. 21 to Jan. 23, prior to the ATF travel exchange.

"Together with the other ASEAN countries, Indonesia will continue the "Visit ASEAN Year" (VAY) joint campaign" says Thamrin Bachri, Deputy of Marketing and International Relations from the State Ministry of Culture and Tourism.

Each ASEAN country contributed US$20,000 towards the launching of the campaign, which started last year during the ATF in Brunei. Presently, the member countries are being asked for a further $60,000 to maintain the VAY marketing profile.

Brunei's Director General of Tourism Sheik Jamaludin Sheik Mohamed, told the ATF Daily that the countries with smaller tourism budgets would benefit greatly from the campaign, as countries such as Thailand, Malaysia and Singapore were also promoting the other destinations. "What is important is the on- going promotion of the VAY." says Sheik Jamaludin.

Meanwhile, from the ATF floor, the Indonesia tourist industry has been voicing its concern about a lack of government awareness and interest in paying attention to tourism.

"Tourism is a real and serious business generating money and jobs. It's not just social work." asserted Yanti Sukamdani, chairperson of the Indonesian Hotel and Restaurant Association (PHRI).

In 2001 alone, with an income of over US$5.4 million, tourism provided 6.6 million direct tourism jobs, excluding indirect ones like those in the souvenir, transportation, packaging and food industries.

"Rather than the current political bickering, which also eats up lots of money and energy, better put the effort into tourism promotion. We already find ourselves in a terrible predicament now. The occupancy rate in Bali is only around 50 percent to 55 percent these days. Under normal circumstances, it should be around 80 percent to 90 percent." says Sukamdani.

Rully Zulkarnain, chairman of Casa Grande (an association of 4 and 5-star-rated hotels) Yogyakarta, says that a coordinated marketing and public relations effort undertaken jointly by the government and the industry would be one way of bringing more tourists to the archipelago.