Kemenkop And Kemenpar Sign MoU Regarding Strengthening The Tourism Sector Through Cooperatives

JAKARTA - The Ministry of Cooperatives (Kemenkop) together with the Ministry of Tourism (Kemenpar) signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) regarding the Establishment and Strengthening of Village Cooperatives/Red and White Villages in Supporting Optimization of the Tourism Sector.

The signing of the MoU note was carried out by the Minister of Cooperatives Budi Arie Setiadi and the Minister of Tourism Widiyanti Putri Wardhana in Wisata Widosatri Village, Ngargosari Kapanewon Samigaluh Village, Kulon Progo, Yogyakarta, Friday, May 9, 2025.

The Minister of Cooperatives, Budi Arie Setiadi, explained that the intention of signing this MoU was to cooperate in the context of the Establishment and Strengthening of the Red and White Village Cooperatives in supporting the optimization of the tourism sector in villages/communities/tourism groups in Indonesia.

"The role of cooperatives in supporting tourism development is the main focus," he said, quoted on Saturday, May 10.

Budi explained that Indonesia is blessed with beautiful natural conditions, so that work in the tourism sector does require an organized institution, so that it can provide benefits for the surrounding community.

Budi Arie also highlighted other economic potentials that can be developed synergically with the tourism sector, such as goat farming which is often found in hilly areas such as Samigaluh.

"After transforming into a cooperative, farmers can also access financing, training, and markets more easily. This will strengthen the community-based tourism village ecosystem," he added.

Minister of Tourism Widiyanti Putri Wardhana explained that this step was based on the huge potential of tourist villages in supporting community-based tourism growth.

The pilot project will be carried out in 17 tourist villages, with the intensity of the expansion of the 291 tourist villages that have won the Indonesian Tourism Village Award, as well as the village where the Campaign is Aware of Inspirational Tourism and Tourism Villages.

"In the future, it is hoped that the development of this cooperative can reach more than 6,000 tourist villages throughout Indonesia, in line with the hopes of forming 80,000 Red and White Cooperatives as the backbone of a community-based economy," said Widiyanti.