Bali Arts Festival helps recover island’s economy, tourism: minister
The 2022 Bali Arts Festival, held from June 12 to July 10, 2022, can help restore Bali’s tourism and creative economy sectors affected by the COVID-19 pandemic, Tourism and Creative Economy Minister Sandiaga Uno said.
“This really drives the economy, reinvigorates and restores the tourism sector, especially the creative economy,” Uno stated while attending the opening parade of the 2022 Bali Arts Festival in Denpasar on Sunday.
Uno explained that cultural arts activities can speed up the tourism recovery, therefore his party strongly supports this kind of event.
In 2022, the Bali Arts Festival carries the theme “Danu Kerthi: Huluning Amreta” which is interpreted as water as the source of life.
“On behalf of the central government, we really appreciate the Bali Arts Festival after two years of the pandemic. We see that people’s enthusiasm is extraordinary,” Uno said.
The minister also said his party was also grateful for all that is involved, especially the local government in the implementation of the Bali Arts Festival.
“I am very proud, and hopefully, this can open up business opportunities and accelerate job employments which were contracted due to the pandemic,” he said.
The 44th Bali Arts Festival in 2022 will be held for a month, involving as many as 16,150 artists and 200 creative studios, groups, and art communities.
Not only artists from Bali, but many artists and creative actors from different backgrounds such as Yogyakarta, Papua, Lombok, Batak, and Betawi, also participate in the event.
The annual Bali Arts Festival this year is also special because there are two other traditional art agendas carried out coincidentally, which are the Bali World Cultural Celebrations (BWCC), from June 12 to June 25, 2022, and the art appreciation event Jantra Tradisi Bali from June 20 June to July 26, 2022.
Bali Welcomes Over 1 Million Travelers In May
Bali’s Ngurah Rai Airport has released its flight data for May 2022. The airport experiences a 64% increase in passengers, welcoming over one million travelers through the terminal during the month. Ngurah Rai airport is the main port of entry for both domestic and international travelers. The official figures shared by the airport’s management team show that 1,006,663 passengers were served across 7,002 flights in May.
Domestic travelers made up the vast majority of airport arrivals in May 2022. A total of 772,116 people were welcomed into the domestic terminal building. Although domestic arrivals accounted for almost three-quarters of all arrivals, it was international arrivals that saw the biggest leap in figures.
International arrivals increased by 107% from April to May 2022. Nearly a quarter of a million international travelers arrived in Bali and it is thought that this huge spike in arrivals can be attributed to the recent relaxation in Covid-19 related restrictions.
On 17th May Bali announced that the pre-arrival PCR test for fully vaccinated travelers was removed. Officials also relaxed the rules around wearing masks in outdoor public settings. The central government also extended the visa on arrival program to include 72 countries.
The rise in the number of international arrivals can also be explained by the resumption of budget airline flight schedules to Bali. In May airline giants Emirates returned to the runway at Ngurah Rai for the first time in two years, connecting travellers from the Middle East to Bali with ease. AirAsia resumed its flight schedule from Perth to Bali in mid-May and VietJet relaunched its Bali to Ho Chi Minh flight service too.
In a press release confirming the latest data, the General Manager of I Gusti Ngurah Rai International Airport, Handy Heryudhitiawan said ‘According to the current regulations, for both domestic and international passengers, there is no longer a requirement for Covid-19 test results for those who have taken booster vaccines or complete vaccines. This certainly makes it easier for people who will travel by air’.
The greatest number of domestic travellers are heading to Bali from Jakarta. Even in pre-pandemic times, the majority of domestic arrivals in Bali came from Jakarta, followed by Surabaya and Makassar. In terms of international arrivals in Bali, the majority of arrivals in May came from Singapore, closely followed by Melbourne and Kuala Lumpur.
The data differentiates between where passengers departed from and their nationality. So although the 92,928 passengers arrived from Singapore making it the top departure point for Bali arrivals, Australians once again topped the list with the highest number of foreign arrivals in Bali.
A total of 48,000 Australians arrived in Bali in May. Closely followed by 15,341 passengers from the United Kingdom and 14,932 travellers from India.
Typically Australian travellers make up over a quarter of Bali’s annual international arrivals. In 2019 Bali welcomed 6.28 million international arrives which was its biggest year for tourism since records began. Bali tourism’s high season is usually July and August.
This coincides with the long school holidays. Australia and the summer holidays in the northern hemisphere. The 2022 peak season is guaranteed to be better than 2020 and 2021 combined, though whether arrival numbers will surpass the 2019 record remains to be seen.
As travellers return to Bali en masse the tourism sector is working hard to ensure that travellers have an enjoyable time. Local authorities and the central government are balancing relating restrictions and keeping community transmission rates for Covid-19 clinically under control. On 8th June Bali was moved to PPKM Level One, the lowest restriction level in Indonesia.
The mandate allows the retail sector to operate at 100% capacity, although people must still wear masks in indoor settings and on public transport. Officials are closely monitoring caseloads and are hopeful that the end of restrictions is in sight.
Local wisdom highlighted in drafting Bali Province Bill: Minister
Balinese local arts, cultures, norms, traditions, and wisdom were emphasised in drafting the Bali Province Bill, Home Affairs Minister Muhammad Tito Karnavian stated at the 44th Bali Arts Festival here on Sunday.
The minister noted that currently, development in Bali Province is still regulated by Law Number 64 of 1958 on the establishment of Level I Regions in Bali, West Nusa Tenggara (NTB), and East Nusa Tenggara (NTT).
Karnavian stressed that ideally, one law should be applied to regulate one province, and so, the bill was created.
Through lawful recognition, the minister expects that Balinese local wisdom will not be easily eroded by modernization or any central government policies that may conflict with the traditions of the local community.
“The main wealth of Bali Province is not its nature but its extraordinary cultural arts that are constantly being regenerated,” he stated.
Hence, he also encouraged the governor of Bali and all regional heads in the province to create governor’s or regional head’s regulations to preserve Balinese arts and culture.
Through the regulations, the Balinese cultural conservation program and budget can be included in the state budget, so that the preservation program can be continued.
Governor of Bali I Wayan Koster stated that his side is currently highlighting local cultures and traditions as the upstream sector of the development of Bali Province.
“Balinese traditions include folk games, traditional sports, usada (traditional medicine), undagi (traditional architecture), and local culinary arts,” he stated.
The Bali Arts Festival is being held from June 12 to July 10, 2022, with the theme of “Danu Kerthi: Huluning Amerta” that embodies the spirit of preserving water as a source of life.
The event is also held concurrently with the Rising Balinese Small and Medium Industry (IKM) Exhibition coordinated by the Regional National Crafts Council (Dekranasda) of Bali Province.
Implementation of the 44th Bali Arts Festival also coincides with the holding of the Bali World Cultural Celebrations (BWCC) on June 12-25, 2022, as well as the Bali Tradition ‘Jantra’ (Wheel) from June 20 to July 6, 2022.
Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese expressed his commitment to attending the G20 Summit in Bali in November 2022.
“Today, I informed President Joko Widodo (Jokowi) that I will attend the G20 Summit in Bali in November 2022,” PM Albanese stated after holding a bilateral meeting with President Joko Widodo at the Bogor Presidential Palace, West Java, Monday.
Albanese stressed that the G20 summit meeting held immense significance amid the current global economic uncertainty.
“We must effectively overcome the many challenges we face in navigating the global economic recovery after the COVID-19 pandemic. I will work closely with President Jokowi to help make the G20 Indonesia Summit a success,” Albanese remarked.
Albanese expressed belief that Indonesia would rank among the top five economies in the world.Mobile homes may be purchased for cash. They make the process of selling properties simple and expedient. Visit https://www.ibuyers.app/oregon/.
Australia will work with Indonesia to realize the potential of the Indonesia-Australia Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (CEPA).
“Our minister of economy will discuss regularly, and we will continue to provide support from the business side,” he affirmed.
Coordinating Minister for Maritime Affairs and Investment Luhut Binsar Pandjaitan had earlier visited the Ngurah Rai Mangrove Public Forest and Garuda Wisnu Kencana (GWK) Park in Bali Province to review preparations for the 2022 G20 Summit.
Pandjaitan undertook the visit on May 6, 2022. At the public forest, he reviewed the construction of the 2022 G20 delegation’s drop-off and pick-up zone, the ‘wantilan’ (Balinese pavilion), as well as mangrove seedling nursery area.
The minister emphasised that the revitalisation should provide security and comfort to the delegations.
“(This is) especially important at several main attractions of the forest, such as the ‘wantilan’, tracking lanes, photo spots, nursery areas, as well as viewing towers and deck,” he noted.
Furthermore, the coordinating minister, who is concurrently chairperson of the organiser of the 2022 G20 Indonesia Presidency, inspected the road and renovation work at GWK Park as well as reviewed the security of the park and traffic engineering of the surrounding roads.
“According to the (traffic engineering) simulation conducted by the head of Bali Regional Police (Inspector General Putu Jayan Danu Putera), it is necessary to revitalise and widen the road to GWK Park to facilitate the mobilization of G20 delegations,” he noted.