Labuan Bajo in West Manggarai Regency, East Nusa Tenggara Province is located at the gateway to the World Natural Heritage Sites of Komodo Island and Rinca Island, and was selected as the setting for the ASEAN Leaders’ Summit in May 2023. The Economic Coordination Agency and the Ministry of Tourism are promoting Labuan Bajo as one of the “most must-visit tourist destinations” after Bali through a national tourism development plan.

 

A-PAD Indonesia held a Provincial Governor’s Ordinance Dissemination Workshop on January 23 in West Manggarai Regency. The workshop aimed to promote the Disaster Prevention Certification System given to hotels as a follow-up to the roll-out of the Regional Disaster Prevention Model that has been implemented in East Nusa Tenggara Province. In order to strengthen the tourism sector’s ability to respond to disasters, the aim is to formulate a Governor’s Ordinance that will serve as the basis for measures, establish clear standards, and make it easier to officially implement the certification system.  

“Such initiatives have already been implemented in other tourist destinations, including Bali. If the local disaster prevention bureau takes the lead in making this project widely known and all hotels and restaurants receive disaster prevention certification, tourists will be able to spend their time with peace of mind,” said A-PAD’s program coordinator, Anton Roy Purnama. 

“We would like to make Labuan Bajo a disaster-resistant tourism town by collaborating with the government tourism association, travel agency association, hotel and restaurant association.” –  Mr. Isfridus S.S. Tobong, Regional Disaster Mitigation Agency (BPBD) 

“Tsunami and flooding are expected in this area. In order to protect tourists on the water, training will be necessary so that everyone involved in the tourism industry, including captains, tour guides, and travel agents will have sufficient knowledge.” – Mr. Sebastian Pandang, West Manggarai Tourism Association

The training was featured in the local media, Bajo Today.com.

Hotel dan Restouran di Labuan Bajo Wajib Penuhi Syarat Tangguh Bencana – Bajo Today (pikiran-rakyat.com)

This project is funded by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Japan’s Grant Aid for Japanese NGO Projects.