BANYUWANGI Ministry of Tourism and Creative Economy (Kemenparekraf) assesses that Banyuwangi Regency consistently presents a quality cultural agenda that directly contributes to strengthening the regional economy.
One of the mainstays is the Gandrung Sewu Festival, which this year was held again at Marina Boom Beach, Banyuwangi.
Assistant Deputy for Tourism Marketing of the Archipelago of the Ministry of Tourism and Creative Economy, Erwita Dianti, said that the Gandrung Sewu Festival is a real example of how the cultural sector can become a driving force for the local economy.
This is the fourth year that the Gandrung Sewu Festival is included in the Kharisma Event Nusantara (KEN). Banyuwangi's consistency in presenting quality agendas like this is not only preserving cultural heritage, but also increasing the economic turnover of the community," said Erwita as quoted by ANTARA, Sunday, October 26.
According to Erwita, the annual event, which has been running since 2012, has proven to be able to attract domestic and foreign tourists, as well as encourage supporting sectors such as hotels, culinary, transportation, and micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs).
The Ministry of Tourism and Creative Economy targets 1.08 billion domestic tourist movements and 15 million foreign tourists by 2025. Areas such as Banyuwangi which have consistent events are the keys to achieving these targets," he said.
Erwita emphasized that this achievement could only be achieved by collaborating between the central government, local governments, tourism industry players, artists, and creative economy actors.
On that occasion, Erwita handed over the 2025 KEN Charter to Banyuwangi Regent Ipuk Fiestiandani as a form of appreciation for the regional commitment in developing cultural-based tourism.
Regent Ipuk explained that this year's Gandrung Sewu Festival involved 2,500 artists, including 1,400 dancers from Banyuwangi and various other regions. He assessed that this activity was not just a cultural performance, but also had a significant economic effect.
"Agenda like this creates a double effect on the regional economy. Hotels are full, people's stalls are crowded, traders are selling well, and transportation services are increasing demand," said Ipuk.
Move Creative Economy
According to him, the event-based tourism approach has become Banyuwangi's main strategy to drive the creative economy and expand community job opportunities.
Every cultural activity that we hold is oriented towards economic impacts. We want cultural pride to also mean prosperity for the people," said Ipuk.
With this success, Banyuwangi reiterated its position as one of the leading tourist destinations in Indonesia that is able to integrate local wisdom, cultural promotion, and regional economic growth.
The English, Chinese, Japanese, Arabic, and French versions are automatically generated by the AI. So there may still be inaccuracies in translating, please always see Indonesian as our main language. (system supported by DigitalSiber.id)
