The Governor of the Riau Islands Province, Ansar Ahmad, has spoken up regarding the importance of flexible visa policies and improved immigration services for the sake of positioning the Riau Islands as Indonesia’s third-largest tourist destination after Bali and Jakarta.
On Tuesday, January 7th, Ahmad led a coordination meeting regarding the relaxation of visa policies to enhance the competitiveness of the tourism and investment sectors in the province. During the meeting, Ahmad emphasised the importance of more flexible visa policies as a strategic step to accelerate the recovery of the tourism sector following the COVID-19 pandemic. He also noted that these policies are aimed at reviving tourism and attracting greater investment to contribute to regional economic growth.
The Riau Islands Province is one of 10 critical checkpoints in global trade. The province is also located in the Strait of Malacca, one of the busiest maritime routes in the world, with 90,000 ships and 70 million containers passing through annually.
“The Riau Islands have geostrategic advantages that many other regions do not possess. Proximity to major markets such as Singapore and Malaysia, along with adequate infrastructure, are significant assets for developing cross-border tourism. With this strategic position, the Riau Islands have great potential to become the third-largest tourist destination in Indonesia after Bali and Jakarta,” said Ahmad.
Back in the year 2019, the province implemented the Visa-Free Policy which, as a result, successfully increased foreign tourist arrivals to 2.86 million. However, post-pandemic, the visa policy has become more restrictive, hindering the arrival of global tourists.
“We continue to encourage the relaxation of visa policies, including the implementation of Visa on Arrival [VoA] with a shorter validity period and competitive rates, to suit the profile of cross-border tourists better,” added Ahmad.
In addition to the implementation of VoA, Ahmad proposed enhancing immigration services through the installation of autogates at the Riau Islands’ main ports. Ultimately, with the relaxation of visa policies as well as improved immigration services, he hopes to see a significant increase in the number of foreign tourists visiting the Riau Islands.
“Seamless, modern, and competitive immigration services will attract global tourists while creating a more comfortable experience for them [as well],” concluded Ahmad.