Rantau, S Kalimantan (ANTARA) - Head of South Kalimantan Tourism Office Syarifuddin said two South Kalimantan attractions are listed in the annual national agenda the Karisma Event Nusantara (KEN) 2024.
The two events are, Ruai Rindu Meratus, in Tapin District, and Loksado Bamboo Rafting, in South Hulu Sungai (HSS) District.
He said they are among 110 tourism events in Indonesia featured in KEN 2024 and he believes it will directly impact the province tourism promotion.
"What is clear is that we promotionally benefit," he said in Rantau, Monday.
The inclusion of South Kalimantan tourism events in KEN, he said, could be used to attract torists to a number of other destinations around these two events.
"We have to take advantage of this momentum. We get this KEN has a very good impact," he said.
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President Joko Widodo (Jokowi) in his virtual opening remarks during the launch of KEN 2024 in Jakarta on Saturday (January 27) said, "I hope that events included in KEN will serve as magnets that attract both domestic and foreign tourists."
The president then expressed hope that as a strategic program devised by the Tourism and Creative Economy Ministry, KEN would not only highlight Indonesia's natural beauty but also the country's cultural wealth.
On the same occasion, Tourism and Creative Economy Minister Sandiaga Uno remarked that the 110 events featured in this year's KEN are expected to help the government achieve the target of 1.25-1.5 billion movements of domestic tourists in 2024.
"We hope that KEN will help us achieve the target of creating 4.4 million job opportunities, increase economic transactions by 20-25 percent, and realize the target of 1.25-1.5 billion movements involving domestic tourists," he stated.
Uno then expressed hope that KEN 2024 would attract as many as 10 million visitors, exceeding the total number of visitors in the program's last year edition at 7.36 million.
The minister noted that he would take various measures for realizing even tourist visits to all events featured in 2024, including by making the most of digital media.
He also ensured the quality of the 110 events, as his ministry had initially established a curating team of experts to tightly select a total of 252 events proposed by provincial tourism offices.
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