There was surprising news in April: West Papua revised integrated tourism master plan. Of course, those who follow news about Papua, especially tourism, will be surprised to hear this news.
Launching from the West Papua ANTARA website, the Provincial Government revised the master plan for developing integrated tourism sectors in all regions of West Papua. The revision progress is currently still in the public consultation stage.
This is according to the statement of the Regional Secretary of West Papua, Dance Sangkek, when in Manokwari “The tourism master plan is accommodated through the revision of the regional development master plan and the overall West Papua tourism development master plan. And it is currently in the public consultation stage”.
The emergence of this master plan revision still has something to do with Raja Ampat. Where Raja Ampat is an international tourist destination that enters Southwest Papua Province, we can understand this because the beauty of Raja Ampat is internationally renowned.
One of the things contained in the revised master plan is establishing tourism potential areas in seven districts. The provincial government has reportedly already mapped the potential areas.
As we know, Papua is a speck of heaven in the world because of its stunning natural beauty. There are so many natural places in various corners of Papua that are very beautiful.
Therefore, so that there is, the West Papua Provincial Government takes the right step by taking potential areas in seven districts. It is hoped that by being designated as a potential tourism area, it will also be able to boost the community’s economy around the potential area.
Steps After Revision
When all masterplan revision processes are finalized, the West Papua Provincial Government will swiftly take the next concrete step. This step is to realize the development of infrastructure that supports tourism in stages.
The infrastructure development stage is a stage that must be considered and can even be said to be one of the crucial stages. Because if the infrastructure is built carelessly, it will result in less-than-optimal infrastructure.
Inadequate tourism support infrastructure will hurt the tourism area itself. This is because visitors will feel uncomfortable and even disturbed by the supporting infrastructure.
So that visitors will determine in themselves that they will not return to the tourist attractions again. If all or most visitors feel this way, then the opened tourist attractions will be empty of visitors.
From here, you know how crucial this stage is. Therefore, this stage of tourism-supporting infrastructure development must be considered properly. It is hoped that all infrastructure meets the standards.
Key Tourism Areas
The Provincial Government will also designate certain tourist areas as mainstay tourism. There are several tourist areas that Dance mentioned as mainstay tourist attractions. Dance says, “We will establish mainstay tourist areas such as Triton Bay, Cenderawasih Bay, Doreri Bay, and other natural attractions.”
For tourism development to run optimally, the provincial government will increase the harmonization of synergy with the district government. Once again, Dance emphasized, “West Papua has a lot of potentials, and the superiority of Triton Bay is more than Raja Ampat”.
Proud to Travel in Indonesia Movement
According to Dance, there will be a Proud to Travel in Indonesia (GBWI) Movement activity which will be held in Manokwari on May 9, 2023. Dance considers this activity the first step towards tourism development in West Papua.
The hope is that this activity will be able to attract local and foreign tourists. If more tourists visit, it will have an impact on increasing regional tourism revenue.
That’s some information about the West Papua revised integrated tourism master plan. Whatever the revision results, let us hope together for the best for West Papua.
