Member countries of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) agreed to form a public-private partnership (PPP) center in order to enhance capacity of the APEC member countries to develop bankable PPP projects. It has been decided by the participating countries that Indonesia will become home to the pilot project. This decision was one of the results of the 2013 APEC Finance Ministers' Meeting (AFMM), which ended on 20 September 2013 in Nusa Dua on the island of Bali.

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Indonesia's Ngurah Rai Airport on the idyllic island of Bali is now the country's largest airport in terms of passenger capacity. Being newly renovated, it can handle 25 million passengers per year. As such, it has surpassed Soekarno-Hatta International Airport, located just outside Jakarta (Java), and the new Kuala Namu airport in Medan (Sumatra), which have passenger capacities of 22 million and 8.1 million respectively. However, after renovation of terminal three at Soekarno-Hatta will be finished, Ngurah Rai is to lose its top spot again.

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Research institute Frost & Sullivan expects that broadband internet penetration in Indonesia (fixed and wireless) will grow to 25% at the end of 2013 and, depending on the development of the Palapa Ring, to 45% by 2018. Internet growth in Indonesia is particularly supported by the mobile broadband segment due to high demand for social media applications and mobile videos among the younger generation of Indonesians. By 2015, about 145 million Indonesians will have internet access. Currently, Indonesia's population numbers about 250 million people.

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The economy of Indonesia continues to be dominated by the island of Java, Indonesia's most populous island with around 130 million people or 60 percent of Indonesia's total population. In the second quarter of 2013, Java contributed 58.15 percent to the nation's total economic growth. Far behind Java are Sumatra (23.90 percent) and Kalimantan (8.73 percent). Within Java, the Greater Jakarta area accounts for 16.50 percent of the country's total economic growth, followed by East Java (15.21 percent) and West Java (14.05 percent).

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Bloomberg reported that the investment agency of Indonesia's finance ministry will start a fund of IDR 3 trillion (USD $302 million) to finance the exploration of geothermal energy resources in Indonesia this year. Saritaon Siregar, the agency’s chairman, said this in an interview at a conference in Jakarta this week. The investment fund is in line with Indonesia's intention of lowering its dependency on expensive and environmentally unfriendly fossil fuels as a source for energy and electricity.

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In April 2013, more than 646 thousand foreign visitors entered Indonesia. This number is a 3.20 percent increase compared to the same month last year. As usual, the three busiest ports of arrival were Ngurah Rai on the island of Bali (a highly popular tourist destination), Soekarno-Hatta just outside Indonesia's capital city Jakarta, and Hang Nadim Airport on the island of Batam (an important industrial zone close to Singapore). These data were presented by Statistics Indonesia (BPS) on Monday (03/06).

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A Lion Air airplane, with flight number JT 904, that flew from Bandung (West Java) to Bali crashed into the sea just a few dozen meters away from the runway at Bali's International I Gusti Ngurah Rai Airport (which is located directly next to the sea) in Denpasar. Of the 101 passengers only one passenger is in critical condition, others have sustained minor injuries. According to sources, the aircraft did not touch the runway but completely overshot it.

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Foreign tourist arrivals in Indonesia went up 14.50 percent in February compared to the same month last year, according to data published by Statistics Indonesia (BPS). In absolute numbers, this translates to more than 678 thousand foreign tourists that visited Indonesia in February. As usual, most tourists entered Indonesia through Bali (Ngurah Rai airport) or Jakarta (Soekarno-Hatta airport). Together, these airports account for over 60 percent of total foreign arrivals.

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On Tuesday 12 March there will be no transportation possible to the island of Bali, Indonesia's most popular destination in terms of tourism. On that day Hindus celebrate Nyepi, i.e. the Day of Silence or the Hindu New Year in the Balinese Saka calendar. Bali still contains a Hindu majority population amid Indonesia's Muslim-majority population. The island's traditional Hindu culture and customs is one reason for the annual millions of foreign arrivals.

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Indonesia is a country with great tourist potential. It has beautiful and varied landscapes, rich cultures, and vibrant cities. Foreign appreciation for Indonesia's tourism sector can be concluded from the continued rising number of foreign tourists in recent years. Today, Statistics Indonesia published the official figures for 2012. According to the institution, Indonesia was visited by 8.04 million foreign tourists in 2012. Moreover, this result meant that the government target was met.

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In Indonesian media it was reported that Sandiaga Uno, who is Indonesian Minister of Tourism and Creative Economy, stated that the country managed to collect a total of USD $10.46 billion in foreign exchange earnings from the tourism industry during the first three quarters of 2023.

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For me, G20 summits were always interesting occasions as the leaders of the world’s strongest economies gather to discuss plans to move forward. This year, however, it was the first time that I was quite reluctant to follow the summit (despite the 2022 edition being organized on the Indonesian island of Bali).

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As we have discussed in earlier reports and articles, the tourism industry is among the heaviest affected industries amid the COVID-19 crisis. Travel restrictions (such as mandatory COVID-19 tests and vaccines) and in some cases full travel bans set by governments across the world are discouraging people from traveling.

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At the 50th anniversary of the Indonesian Hotels and Restaurants Association in mid-February 2019, Indonesian President Joko Widodo emphasized that the tourism industry should become the biggest industry in Indonesia in terms of foreign exchange earnings. Indonesia – a huge Archipelago that consists of more than 17.000 islands – has so much to offer to (foreign) tourists, such as beautiful beaches and countryside, flora & fauna, diving spots, wildlife, culture, culinary, historic relics as well as vibrant city life. However, so far, it fails to tap its full potential.

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After having successfully hosted the 2018 Asian Games last September, Indonesia hosted the 2018 Annual Meetings of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and World Bank Group on Bali on 8-14 October. Every year, the IMF and World Bank organize these meetings to discuss the latest financial and economic developments that occurred across the globe, while also poverty eradication and other key global issues – such as protectionism and climate change - are placed high on the agenda. The main themes of this year’s meetings include digital development and investing in human capital, which resulted in the “Bali Fintech Agenda” as well as the launch of “Human Capital Index”.

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Saturday 17 March 2018 is a public holiday in Indonesia. On this day the Hindu community of Indonesia, which mostly lives on the island of Bali, celebrates Nyepi i.e. the Day of Silence or the Hindu New Year in the Balinese Saka calendar. As Nyepi is a day of self-reflection for the Indonesian Hindu community, activities come to a near complete standstill from 6 am to 6 pm. Local rules instruct that Hindus are not allowed to light fires (or lamps), work, eat, talk, nor are they allowed to be engaged in any sort of other entertainment.

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The tourism industry of Indonesia is one of the most important industries in terms of the nation's foreign exchange earnings. However, compared to its neighboring countries - specifically Singapore, Malaysia and Thailand - Indonesia lags behind in terms of foreign visitor arrivals. This "failure" is partly attributed to the weak state of Indonesia's infrastructure. This includes the lack of enough airports or the lack of enough aircraft and passenger handling capacity at existing airports.

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For the third time Indihome Prambanan Jazz will be held this year on 18-19 August 2017. A line up of international musicians, including Shane Filan and Sarah Brightman, are scheduled to entertain thousands of music lovers in a charming setting in front of the Prambanan Temple complex near the city of Yogyakarta (Java).

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Around the globe there are plenty of fraudulent investment scams offered to investors (for example the "ponzi scheme", "pump and dump", and many others). This also occurs in Indonesia, or, related to Indonesia. Perpetrators can be Indonesian or foreign. In case of foreigners, the offshore investing scheme is a popular scheme (and a fairly simple one in the era of Internet). Criminals offer victims a lucrative investment opportunity in Indonesia, promising big profits. However, investors will never see their money again.

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Indonesia's Tourism Ministry is optimistic it can boost the number of American tourists who visit Indonesia by 25 percent to 375,000 individuals in 2017. Last year a total of 300,000 US citizens visited Indonesia for a holiday, up 11 percent year-on-year (y/y) from US visitor arrivals in the preceding year. Arief Yahya, Indonesian Tourism Minister, said the island of Bali is the favorite tourist destination for American tourists in Indonesia.

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