Press Statement of President of the Republic of Indonesia during Inspection of Development Project for Residential Facilities to Support Labuan Bajo Tourism Area, in the Marina Beach Area, Labuan Bajo, West Manggarai Regency, East Nusa Tenggara (NTT) Province, July 22, 2022

Journalist
Could you give me your thoughts on the village arrangement, Sir?

President of the Republic of Indonesia (Joko Widodo)
The arrangement of the Marina area is not only a matter of arranging the plaza and amphitheater, but also the village. The village arrangement will be directed so the existing houses can also benefit from tourism in Labuan Bajo.

Therefore, the Central Government and regional governments will carry out house-by-house rehabilitation. Some of the houses will be transformed into kiosks, while others will be revamped to become homestays. That way, tourism in Labuan Bajo can bring benefits to small businesses, not only to four-star and five-star companies.

I also saw that facilities for toilets have been prepared, but the most important thing is maintenance. Waste management is also important. This morning, I urge Regent of West Manggarai and Governor of NTT to constantly pay attention to waste management, toilet maintenance, and carry out training for homestay tourism actors. The measure is all it takes to achieve our goal, while the program has not become a big development yet. So, we start with the area arrangement at first, a residential arrangement just like this.

Journalist
Then, once the program has been completed, Sir, are there any plans to develop similar programs in other villages?

President of the Republic of Indonesia (Joko Widodo)
The village arrangement already exists in several areas. We also developed the same project in Mandalika, then in Labuan Bajo, and later in Likupang. Thus, we involved all small businesses. We also involved local communities in Borobudur and Lake Toba. That means those who obtain the benefit are not only the big businesses.

(RIF/MUR)