Starting August 1 This Year, The NTT Provincial Government Will Set A Komodo-Pedar Island Entrance Fee Of IDR 3.75 Million Per Person

Head of the East Nusa Tenggara Province Tourism Office, Sonny Z Libing (ANTARA)

KUPANG - The Provincial Government of East Nusa Tenggara (NTT) has set an entrance fee for local and foreign tourists visiting Komodo Island and Padar Island, West Manggarai Regency at IDR 3.75 million per person.

"The NTT government has decided to set a tariff for tourist visits to Komodo Island and Padar Island. The tariff will take effect on August 1, 2022", Head of the East Nusa Tenggara Provincial Tourism Office, Sonny Z Libing told reporters in Kupang, Antara, Monday, July 4.

The determination of the entry fee to Komodo Island at IDR 3.75 million has been through the results of an academic study by environmental experts from IPB Bogor and the University of Indonesia who were specifically asked by the NTT Government to study the carrying capacity on Komodo Island and Padar Island.

The results of the study carried out by the experts showed that there was a decline in the value of ecosystem services on these two islands, so conservation was needed to cover the damage or these ecosystem services.

In addition, said Sony Z, it is necessary to limit tourist visits to Komodo Island and Padar Island to only 200,000 per year.

So far, visits have reached 300,000-400,000 tourists so it has a negative impact on the sustainability of the ecosystem in the tourist area.

"The results of the study show that to maintain the survival of the Komodo dragon, the number of visits must be limited", said Sony Z Libing accompanied by the Head of the Administrative Bureau of the Regional Secretariat of NTT, Prisila Q. Parera.

According to him, the results of the study also show that there is a need for funds to finance conservation on these two islands, so the entrance fee for the two islands is set at IDR 3.75 million per person per year.

He added that the entrance fee will be used for conservation costs, local community empowerment costs, costs for increasing capacity building for tourism actors on the two islands as well as monitoring and security costs.

"He said security in the Komodo Island area has become tighter so that all activities within the Komodo Island area can be monitored. The government does not want any more cases of illegal hunting, illegal fishing, fires in the Komodo Island area", he said.

He explained that the entrance ticket fee for tourists is also used for promotional costs, Non-Tax State Revenue (PNBP), and income for regional revenues, both for the Province and West Manggarai Regency.

"Including the cost of empowering local communities and economic entrepreneurs around the area", said Sony Z Libing.

So far, the entrance ticket to the Komodo Island area is only IDR 7,500 per person for local tourists and IDR 150,000 for foreign tourists, which is a very cheap rate that ignores existing conservation because tourist visits are not controlled.

"Tourists visit 300-400 thousand per year is a very large number as a result of which conservation and security activities as well as local community empowerment are neglected. Cases of illegal hunting and land burning are very rampant", he said.