Tourism 5.0 and Event Digitization Will Be Indonesia's Mainstays in 2026

JAKARTA - The government continues to boost the tourism sector as one of the driving forces of the national economy as well as the gateway to increasing the number of domestic and foreign tourists.

Through various flagship programs, Indonesian tourism is directed not only to pursue the number of visits, but also the quality of safe, sustainable, and high-value tourism experiences.

In line with these efforts, the Minister of Tourism (Menpar) Widiyanti Putri Wardhana has set five flagship programs of the Ministry of Tourism in 2026 as a strategy for developing a more competitive and sustainable national tourism.

"With flagship programs, we are still consistent in prioritizing the improvement of tourism safety, tourist villages, quality tourism programs, and others while strengthening the sector's contribution to the national economy," said Minister of Tourism Widiyanti in a Working Meeting with Commission VII of the DPR in Jakarta, as quoted by ANTARA.

He said that the five flagship programs include improving travel safety, developing tourist villages, quality tourism, Events by Indonesia, and Tourism 5.0. In 2026, Tourism 5.0 will focus on strengthening digitization, especially in the licensing system for event organization.

Widiyanti explained that the tourism safety improvement program is aimed at strengthening the readiness of tourism industry players, especially in high-risk or extreme tourism destinations and activities. This effort is carried out through competency-based training and certification for tour guides so that they are able to prevent and handle early situations of emergencies.

On the other hand, the development of tourist villages remains a priority for the government in 2026. The Ministry of Tourism targets the strengthening of networks of more than 6,100 tourist villages throughout Indonesia, accompanied by assistance for villages with potential and strengthening the role of tourism-conscious communities.

The program also includes certification of tourist villages (Sertidewi) and halal certification carried out in cooperation with the Halal Product Guarantee Organizing Agency (BPJPH) to improve the quality of services as well as the competitiveness of destinations.

In the framework of quality tourism, Widiyanti said the government would encourage the development of special interest segments, such as gastronomy, marine, wellness, textiles, as well as art and design. This approach is expected to be able to attract tourists with high purchasing power while increasing tourist spending while in Indonesia.

A number of supporting activities will also be strengthened, including the Clean Tourism Movement, curation of tourist attractions and travel patterns, as well as the development of the Wonderful Indonesia Gastronomy and Wonderful Indonesia Wellness programs.

Meanwhile, through the Event by Indonesia program, the Ministry of Tourism targets the implementation of various quality events that are able to become the identity of Indonesia on the global stage. This program includes the Karisma Event Nusantara, SEABEF, as well as various other national and international event agendas.

To support the overall program, the Ministry of Tourism has also strengthened human resource development and institutions. Widiyanti said the government facilitated competency-based training and certification for 1,900 participants.

In addition, tourism human resources training in the fields of soft skills, managerial skills, and sustainable tourism is targeted to reach 2,090 people in 38 provinces. Vocational education through six tourism polytechnics is also strengthened with a target of 2,950 graduates.

"Strengthening human capital quality and digitalization of governance, including event licensing, is the key to ensuring the development of national tourism that is inclusive, adaptive to change, and able to compete globally," said Minister of Tourism Widiyanti.