Indonesia to offer incentives to tourism to counter Covid-19 impact

Tourists to Indonesia (Photo: AFP/VNA)

The Indonesian Government is formulating incentives for tourism industry stakeholders such as hotels or airlines to counter negative impacts of the novel coronavirus (Covid-19), said Indonesian Minister of Finance Sri Mulyani Indrawati.

Speaking after a cabinet meeting on February 11, Indrawati said the measures include subsidies to airlines in order to promote domestic tourism and increase public spending.

The proposed incentives are still being studied by the Ministry of Finance, the Ministry of Transportation and the Ministry of Tourism and Creative Economy at the request of President Joko Widodo, she added.

Minister of Transportation Budi Karya Sumadi said the numbers of tourists to Bali, Bintan and Manado, three tourism destinations in Indonesia, have dropped remarkably after the Government imposed a ban on flights to and from China from February 5. 

Budi Karya hopes that these incentives can directly impact prices of airline tickets and hotels, especially packages bundling hotel and flight services.

Minister of Tourism and Creative Economy Wishnutama Kusubandio previously estimated that Indonesia could lose 4 billion USD if flights from China are closed for a year.

The total loss was further added as foreign tourists have cancelled their trips to Indonesia due to fears of the virus, he said./.

VNA