Indian tourist arrivals in Indonesia have increased by more than 20% during 2018 over the previous year and is expected to increase during the current year too, Ade Sukendar, Consul General of Indonesia, Mumbai, said here on Wednesday.
India is an important market for Indonesia with the number of arrivals from India increasing year after year. As many as 5,95,060 Indians had visited Indonesia during 2018 and during the current year the figure is expected to touch 7,00,000. Bali continues to be a popular destination for Indians, who constitute the third highest group among foreign tourists visiting the destination, he said while speaking to The Hindu .
Mr.Sukendar, who was in the city to interact with Indonesian students studying in the city and to interact with trade representatives, said efforts were being made to promote other Indonesian tourist destinations among tourists from India.
Asked about the possibility of introduction of direct flights to south Indian cities such as Tiruchi, he said more services would be introduced, especially to Indonesian destinations in North Sumatra and Aceh. India cinema had a big fan following in Indonesia and given the close cultural ties between the two countries, there was good scope for Indonesia to attract more tourist arrivals.
There was a good scope for increasing bilateral trade between India and Indonesia, which currently stood at around US $ 18.74 billion. Exports to India from Indonesia stood at US $ 13.72 billion during 2018, registering a decline from the previous year’s figure of US $ 14.08 billion. Imports from India increased during 2018 to touch US$ 5.01 billion from US $ 4.04 billion the previous year. Indonesia largely exported coal and palm oil to India. India had a lot to offer to Indonesia in IT, health and pharmaceuticals, machinery and automotive sectors.
Currently about 15 Indonesian students are studying in Tiruchi and Indonesian students were attracted by the quality of higher education here and its affordability. Pointing out that the 34th Trade Expo Indonesia is scheduled to be held in Indonesia from October 16 to 20, he said that the Consulate in Mumbai in coordination with Indonesian Embassy would facilitate group visits of Indian businessmen to the expo. India and Indonesia enjoyed good relations historically, he said: “We will commemorate 70 years of diplomatic relations between the two countries in 2019.”
