The Yogyakarta Tourism Draft Regional Regulation is Highlighted, Groundwater and Carrying Capacity are a Concern

Economic Benefits Encouraged to Reach Villages

Apart from protecting the environment and historic areas, equal distribution of economic benefits is a concern in discussing the Draft Regional Regulation.

UGM Center for Tourism Studies (Puspar) expert, Ike Janita Dewi, emphasized the importance of connecting tourist villages with cultural villages, art studios and local communities.

This network can be developed through integrated tourism travel patterns. In this way, tourists get a wider choice of experiences and the economic benefits are expected to reach more people.

The special committee also encourages the development of tourist villages to connect with MSMEs, the hotel industry, travel agencies, as well as organizers of activities and festivals. The program needs to be prepared in stages with targets that suit the characteristics of each region.

Strengthening the tourism workforce is also proposed through training, mentoring, competency certification, mastery of technology, as well as understanding the special features and interpretations of Yogyakarta culture.

It is deemed necessary to prepare a database of the number of workers and their competency levels as a basis for preparing capacity building programs.

Meanwhile, the Tourism Office said that program implementation must consider regional financial capacity and fulfill mandatory budget priorities. Collaboration between institutions is considered to be able to help optimize available resources.