Jakarta (ANTARA) - Minister of Tourism and Creative Economy, Sandiaga Uno, has said he is optimistic that Garuda Indonesia's recovery efforts would be realized as domestic and international flights have started to improve.
"We must ensure that the company (Garuda Indonesia) can strive for the implementation of good corporate governance along with professionalism to restore the country's aviation industry," he observed at a weekly press briefing here on Monday.
He said he expected the restructuring, carried out by the Ministry of State-Owned Enterprises (BUMN), to save Garuda Indonesia so that jobs can be widely opened and economic wheels can turn again.
If the state flag carrier stops operations, it will significantly impact all economic sectors of Indonesia, including tourism, he pointed out.
"We need to support the government's efforts towards saving Garuda Indonesia, one of them is to crowd the Garuda Indonesia Travel Fair (GITF),” Uno said.
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At GITF 2021, he observed that there is an increasing trend in Indonesian tourists and cargo needs that can be focused on for the revival of Garuda Indonesia.
Meanwhile, the Ministry of Tourism and Creative Economy has been making efforts to resurrect the tourism sector that has been impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic by focusing on domestic travelers, he added.
In this regard, the recovery of Garuda Indonesia as a national carrier is expected to have a huge contribution to the ministry's efforts, he said.
"As a former businessman who has been in an aviation business, I am impressed by the thousands of jobs, (and) maybe tens of thousands of jobs in the aviation ecosystem are also touched by the presence of Garuda Indonesia," he remarked.
Furthermore, he announced that he has been appointed as Garuda Indonesia's Chief Influencer Officer by president director Irfan Setiaputra.
At the meeting, he also urged that Garuda Indonesia's restructuring efforts not just rest with the government, but become a national movement so all can be involved in supporting the recovery.
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