Jakarta Globe 31 Aug 15;
Jakarta. Business and government leaders from six Asia-Pacific countries in the so-called Coral Triangle zone have called for the adoption of sustainable tourism guidelines and standards for development and investment in protected maritime zones.
The 4th Coral Triangle Initiative on Coral Reefs, Fisheries, and Food Security (CTI-CFF) Regional Forum gathered representatives from six pioneering countries — Indonesia, Malaysia, Papua New Guinea, the Philippines, Solomon Islands and Timor Leste — in Nusa Dua, Bali, from Thursday till Saturday.
In a policy round table at the forum, participants agreed that guidelines for sustainable tourism in the Coral Triangle could be largely built upon existing globally available guidelines, but with some tailored components specific to local conditions and revised to be made relevant to all potential tourism-related sectors.
These guidelines include those established by international organizations such as the Global Sustainable Tourism Council, according to a statement obtained by the Jakarta Globe on Monday.
Francis Lee, president of Singaporean resort Raffles Marina who was among the forum speakers, said that the adoption of standards for investments would not only boost efforts to conserve marine resources but also create shared values.
"Value creation, recognition, integration, management and realization, are imperative to sustainability, as they are to development," said Lee.
Businesses also urged the governments of the six nations involved to work with the private sector and offer appropriate incentives -- or remove disincentives -- to encourage them to utilize sustainability standards.
“The private sector needs to understand that no tourism is possible without sustainability, but when the government lacks resources, the private sector should stand hand in hand to protect the area,” Ismail Ning, chairman of the Indonesian Marine Tourism Association (Gahawisri), said in the statement.
The participants also endorsed a plan to create a tourism branding and marketing mechanism for specific areas in the Coral Triangle that meets sustainable marine tourism standards. Such a mechanism should also reflect the values of the Coral Triangle countries and ensure a high-quality visitor experience.
"We hope that the three-day forum will provide solid recommendations that allow more stakeholders to be more committed in practicing sustainable marine tourism at their respected countries, for the long run,” said Widi Pratikto, executive director of the CTI-CFF regional secretariat.
The event was attended by more than 300 participants from over 20 countries, including high-ranking government officials such as the minister of tourism and culture from Malaysia Mohamed Nazri Abdul Aziz, minister of tourism of Solomon Islands Bartholomew Parapolo and Indroyono Soesilo, the recently fired coordinating minister for maritime affairs who now serves as an honorary adviser to Indonesia's minister of tourism.
Key business players to maintain coral triangle sustainability
Desy Nurhayati, The Jakarta Post 1 Sep 15;
The private sector should take the lead in maintaining the sustainable development of the Coral Triangle area to ensure that the world’s epicenter of marine biodiversity remains well conserved while it is concurrently introduced as a major tourist destination, experts suggested during a recent regional business forum.
During the 4th Coral Triangle Initiative on Coral Reefs, Fisheries and Food Security forum (CTI-CFF) held from Aug. 27 to Aug. 29 in Bali, leaders and experts representing business, government and NGOs met to map out policies, strategies and solutions to promote sustainable marine tourism in the Coral Triangle region, which spans the sea regions of Indonesia, Malaysia, Papua New Guinea, the Philippines, Solomon Islands and Timor Leste.
One of the key themes of the forum was how to effectively promote and support the private sector to play a greater role in supporting responsible and sustainable tourism in the region. The region gets its name from the scientific delineation around the waters which contain more than 500 species of reef-building coral.
Bali-based Coral Triangle Center executive director Rili Djohani said marine tourism in the Coral Triangle region had steadily grown in the past couple of years, putting the ecosystem at risk due to the direct and indirect impact of tourist activity.
“We need to ensure that marine tourism in the region remains sustainable. The tourism industry should implement codes and standards to ensure that the fragile ecosystem on which tourist activities depend will remain protected and sustained for generations to come,” Rili said on the sidelines of the event.
The executive director of Conservation International Indonesia, Ketut Sarjana Putra, meanwhile, said companies must propose environmentally-friendly business practices in order to be able to operate in the Coral Triangle area.
By working together with local communities, authorities, as well as NGOs, the private sector, according to Ketut, could support conservation efforts while at the same time keep their business profitable.
“The private sector should play a greater role, and take the lead in developing the Coral Triangle as one of the world’s sustainable marine tourist destinations,” he told The Jakarta Post.
It is estimated that more than 85 percent of the reefs in the Coral Triangle are directly threatened by human enterprise, with the greatest local threat coming from overfishing, watershed-based pollution and coastal development. Meanwhile, data from the World Travel and Tourism Council showed that the travel and tourism industry in the Coral Triangle’s countries had a tremendous economic impact on the region. Approximately US$3 billion in coastal tourism revenues are derived from the region.
Indonesian Marine Tourism Business Association (Gahawisri) chairman Ismail Ning welcomed the call for business players to contribute more to marine conservation efforts.
“The private sector needs to understand that no tourism will happen without sustainability. When the government lack resources, the private sector should step up and protect the area,” he said.
