JEDDAH, 4 June 2007 — A visiting Indonesian cultural and tourism mission gave a colorful presentation at an ‘Indonesia Night’ hosted by the country’s Consul General Gatot Abdullah Mansyur here on Saturday night.
“The idea in organizing the cultural presentation is to give a glimpse of the rich culture and heritage of Indonesia that also boasts several attractive tourist destinations,” Indonesian Ambassador Salem Al Jufri said in his address.
The aim of the 20-member mission, which also held road shows at Aziz Mall for two days, is to boost the flow of Saudi tourists into the country’s several destinations.
The country is also eying increased investment and joint ventures from this part of the world.
“The plan is to project Indonesia as one of the safest and most attractive destinations in the world,” the ambassador said.
The country has a vision to make tourism one of the main foreign exchange earners, he added.
The mission, organized by the Indonesian ministry of culture and tourism, staged cultural presentations, which included an interactive bamboo music.
M. Helmy, Garuda Indonesia General Manager for Saudi Arabia and Middle East, said: “We hope to increase the number of tourists and other visitors from Saudi Arabia to 100,000 this year, from last year’s 70,000. The airline operates eight flights a week from the Kingdom — five from Jeddah and three from Riyadh.
“Together with Saudi Arabian Airlines, we plan to operate 290 special flights for transporting 210,000 Haj pilgrims this year,” Helmy added.
“Our effort is to attract visitors to all Indonesian destinations, although we are promoting Bali and a couple of other attractions,” a mission member said.