InJourney Suggests Removal of WSBK in Mandalika Circuit
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16 June 2023 12:46 WIB
TEMPO.CO, Jakarta - Director of state-owned tourism holding firm InJourney, Dony Oskaria, suggested the World Superbike (WSBK) championship at the Mandalika Circuit, West Nusa Tenggara, be removed from the government’s agenda as it caused losses to the country.
The Tourism and Creative Economy Ministry’s member of the tourism special zone evaluation team, Taufan Rahmadi, opined that Dony’s suggestion could not only be considered from the losses only but rather needs a thorough evaluation.
The government and related parties must look at it from several aspects. “The thing that must be noticed is thanks to WSBK for boosting the people's economy,” Taufan said.
The Mandalika MotoGP events also further promoted Indonesia to the world. “Thirdly, this is about the pride of the nation and the world, especially NTB that can hold world-class sports tourism,” he said
Based on the NTB Statistics Agency (BPS) data, the events brought good impacts on tourism-supporting industries, such as MSMEs, transportation, and lodging or hotels.
From April 2022 to April 2023, the occupancy rate of star and non-star hotels rose 26.70 percent and 18.73 percent, respectively. The number of tourist visits also increased by 11.11 percent, supporting the NTB’s economic growth to up by 3.57 percent.
“We can also know from BPS data that there is money circulation,” Taufan remarked.
Taufan further argued that logging a loss in the early period is part of the business challenge and that making a profit takes time and process. Besides, removing the Mandalika WSBK as requested by InJourney is not in line with President Joko Widodo or Jokowi's big vision of reviving Mandalika as a super-priority tourism destination.
SUPRIYANTHO KHAFID
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