Indonesia to focus on 'quality tourists', wants to ban backpackers from Bali

Bali tourists on a budget might face a reroute if the Indonesian government decides to carry forward the proposal of the country's Maritime and Investment Coordinator Minister Luhut Binsar Pandjaitan. As per Bali Sun Report, the Minister has sought to ban budget travellers, commonly known as backpackers, in his controversial proposal.

Indonesia will market itself to more affluent visitors. "We'll aim for quality tourism in Bali, so we won't allow backpackers to enter once the re-opening plan for international travellers is officially put in place in the near future," Minister Pandjaitan asserted during his recent visit to Bali. The statement comes while Indonesia is battling to get on track after COVID-19 pandemic-slugged economy. It is noteworthy that the decision will hugely impact the country's GDP since about 4.1% of the total earnings come from tourism, a 2017 OECD report stated. Additionally, the tourism sector also employs about 12.7 million people in Indonesia.

Indonesia plans to re-open international borders

The Indonesian government has planned to re-open the island for foreign tourists as soon as the capital city relaxes partial lockdown. Tourists will be welcomed from "selected countries" i.e. with low rates of COVID-19 infections to enter Bali. However, the criteria for determining wealthy and not so wealthy tourists is yet to be ascertained.

"Our preparation stages to reopen the border will be implemented with some selected countries when the Covid-19 transmission is properly handled and when the partial lockdown in Bali reaches level 2," Luhut Binsar Pandjaitan told The Bali Sun.

Meanwhile, Lahut has clarified the list of protocols the travellers have to abide by before entering the holiday destination. Firstly, all Bali tourists will need to register the PeduliLindungi contact-tracing application on their mobiles. Secondly, they will have to scan the barcode before entering malls or tourist spots. On the Covid-19 infection front, the island country has witnessed a steep decline in cases since the last week of August. As of September 18, Indonesia reported 3,385 cases. Following this, the Maritime and Investment Coordinator Minister also urged Balinese to adhere to the basic measures to avoid a resurgence of the disease.

Image: Unsplash (representative)