RIYADH, 16 June 2005 — Indonesia has announced to grant visa-on-arrival (VOA) facility to Saudi nationals in a move to attract tourists and businessmen. The new visa system will also cover citizens of 13 other countries including Kuwait, Qatar and Egypt who will be able to obtain visas at Indonesian airports or border entry points.
“The announcement about granting visa-on-arrival facility for Saudi nationals has already been made. The Indonesian mission is awaiting formal confirmation from Jakarta,” M. Sukiarto, a spokesman of the Indonesian Embassy, said yesterday.
More than 60,000 Saudis, including a substantial number of Saudi tourists, travel to Indonesia every year.
The move is also perceived as a U-turn in the visa policy of the Indonesian government, which imposed visa restrictions on Saudi nationals following the 9/11 terror attacks. Following the new policy, Jakarta has decided to allow nationals of 13 countries in Europe and the Middle East to obtain a VOA. The decision brings the number of foreign countries to have been granted the facility to 33 so far.
The new visa policy, said Sukiarto, should further enhance Riyadh-Jakarta links especially in commerce and tourism sectors and promote people-to-people level contacts.
The Kingdom is the 13th largest investor in Indonesia with 23 joint ventures set up at a cost of SR11.5 billion.
