Ridwan Kamil: Tourism In West Java Is Starting To Expand, Hotels Are Full At The End Of The Year

Governor of West Java, Ridwan Kamil. (Photo: BNPB)

JAKARTA - West Java Governor M Ridwan Kamil or Kang Emil said the tourism sector in West Java is getting better amid the COVID-19 pandemic, and it is estimated that it will again stretch in the end of 2020 holidays.

"Tourism in West Java is getting better, huh. By monitoring the booking or occupancy of hotel and lodging rooms at the end of the year, it is full," said Kang Emil as quoted by Antara, Wednesday, November 18.

Kang Emil said, towards the end of 2020 his party strives to continue to enforce health protocols to prevent the spread of COVID-19 through the 3M movement, namely wearing masks, washing hands, and maintaining distance.

He said that during the long holiday weekend in October 2020 there was an increase in the number of COVID-19 cases in West Java, but not as high as the increase in numbers after the long holiday in August 2020.

"So during the long holiday yesterday there was an increase in cases, right. But compared to August, it fell. So August was probably high, yesterday was a bit high. Yes, hopefully this is because we carried out raids on tourists suspected of COVID-19, right, 15,000. the rapid test then applies discipline, "he said.

According to him, of the tens of thousands of people who underwent randomized rapid tests at various tourist attractions, only 408 people were declared reactive and from this number, only five people tested positive for COVID-19, then the daily increase in the number of COVID-19 after that continued to decline.

"Hopefully at the end of the year the downward trend in cases by this long holiday can become a discipline," he said.

Meanwhile, regarding the discourse of eliminating the long holiday at the end of this year, Kang Emil said that his party was only tasked with securing and ensuring health protocols were implemented properly.

At the same place, the Head of the West Java Bank Indonesia Representative Office (KPwBI), Herawanto, said that efforts to raise optimism for economic growth had yielded results.

This, said Herawanto, was inscribed through the increase in economic growth in West Java in the last quarter, although it was still minus.

"So the PSBB policy which is implemented is a micro PSBB, so it is not a big one, but a micro one. Then the target will also have an extraordinary positive impact including on tourism. We noted that accommodation increased in the third quarter, trade was also ok," he said.

He said the economic conducivity and maintenance of this health protocol must be maintained by the West Java Provincial Government, including to conducive the economy in the future.

"It is long term, instant maybe not clear, but it is medium to long. So two things, the policies of the provincial and local governments are proven to have increased the movement of people, transportation and tourism have started to increase," he said.

He said that due to an increase in transportation and tourism activities, shopping activities had also increased and West Java's economic growth, which had previously been almost minus six percent, was headed for minus four percent.

"Why is it still a minus, well, the West Java economy is true that tourism is one of the main factors as always explained by the Governor. But there are export manufacturing that is still surviving, although it has improved greatly compared to the past," he said.