Day: October 20, 2021

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Aceh’s Nusa Tourism Village designated to provide disaster education

Minister of Tourism and Creative Economy, Sandiaga Uno, has designated Nusa Tourism Village in Aceh Besar District as the first tourism village with a “disaster education outlook” in Indonesia.

“Among the 50 tourism village nominees for the Indonesia Tourism Village Award, Nusa Village is the first tourism village developed with a disaster education outlook,” Minister Uno stated during a visit to Nusa Village in Aceh Province on Wednesday.

Besides natural beauty and arts and culture, Nusa Village also has the potential to be developed as a tourism village dedicated to disaster education, he said.

“Nusa Village was devastated in the 2004 earthquake and tsunami, hence they have the necessary experience to teach local wisdom and disaster mitigation for us to know what to do if an earthquake occurs and a tsunami is imminent,” the minister remarked.

The ministry will assist disaster education programs in Nusa village by collaborating with regional governments, the Meteorology, Climatology, and Geophysical Agency (BMKG), educational institutions, and foreign governments, such as Japan, Uno informed.

Nusa Village is expected to accept school groups and organize educational visits on disaster mitigation, he added.

Uno revealed Nusa Village has been equipped with 42 units of traditional stilt houses to serve as homestays for visitors. He said the homestays are sufficient for the tourism village though they lack any international certification.

During his visit, the minister also donated 42 white bedcovers so that all the stilt houses have uniform bedcovers.

“It is a standard that bedcovers and pillow covers in homestays be white to make an impression of cleanliness for the visitors,” Uno remarked.

The minister asked the village administrators to improve homestays so they meet international standards as the village has admitted overseas tourists from Southeast Asian countries, such as Malaysia and Singapore.

Source: Antara News

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Universities must promote pluralism, help Papuan students feel at home

The Institute for Research, Education, and Information on Economy and Social Affairs (LP3ES) has urged universities in Indonesia to play an active role in ensuring Papua remains a part of the country by promoting pluralism in their campus communities.

To this end, the universities could support the nation’s collective efforts to care for Papua by consistently accommodating Papuans within their respective campus communities, LP3ES head Didik J.Rachbini said.

Speaking at a webinar on the economic and political research on military placement in Papua here on Monday, he argued that pluralism is necessary for campus communities in Papua and outside Papua.

In this regard, Papuan students need to be admitted at various universities, including the Airlangga University in Surabaya, East Java, and the Gadjah Mada University in Yogyakarta, Rachbini argued.

The sense of diversity in Indonesia’s university campuses is not merely reflected by the presence of Papuan students but also by the existence of lecturers from various regions, he said.

By doing so, the national unity in diversity could be created, he said, adding that students admitted at universities outside their regions could also be prevented from nurturing thoughts of supporting insurgency.

According to Rachbini, students can be prevented from falling into the grip of the separatist movement if they are made to feel they are a part of a single nation at their respective university campuses.

Therefore, education can play an important role in safeguarding Indonesia’s territorial integrity besides economic and military policies, he argued.

He also highlighted the importance of building collective awareness among Indonesians that disunity would trigger a humanitarian disaster, as shown by the experiences of North and South Korea, and North and South Vietnam.

For resolving the Papua issue, he suggested that Indonesia focus on its own solution through the role of education instead of relying on solutions offered or reflected by cases in other countries.

The contributions of Indonesian universities’ research projects to finding solutions to Papua’s problems remain insignificant, Rachbini added.

Source: Antara News

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Yogyakarta to commence single-gate entry trial for tour buses

The Yogyakarta city government is planning to commence the trial of a single-gate entry system for tour buses this weekend under which the buses will need to apply for entry to Yogyakarta at Giwangan Terminal.

“We will commence the trial this weekend to observe the implementation and potential issues from the trial,” Deputy Mayor of Yogyakarta Heroe Poerwadi stated in Yogyakarta on Wednesday.

Tour buses will be required to apply for a city-entry permit at the Giwangan Terminal following which each passenger’s documents will be checked and the permit will be granted if all the requirements are met, the deputy mayor explained.

A sticker and parking card would be provided to buses passing the checks, which will allow them access to the city’s three reopened parking centers on Abu Bakar Ali, Senopati, and Ngabean roads, he informed.

The tour bus screening is aimed to control bus and tourist entry to the city amidst the COVID-19 pandemic, Poerwadi said. He confirmed tourism actors in the city will be notified about the trial beforehand.

Meanwhile, Yogyakarta Transportation Office Head Agus Arif said the requirement of bus stickers and parking cards to access parking centers would ensure all arriving tour buses apply for the permit at Giwangan Terminal.

“Without the bus sticker and the parking card, they cannot access the parking centers, and we will penalize tour buses that park outside the parking centers,” Arif informed.

With a total capacity of 127 buses, the three parking centers can accommodate up to 150 tour buses, which is the average number of tour bus arrivals on the weekends, he said.

Forty extra waiting spaces will be made available at Giwangan Terminal for the permitted tour buses, he said.

The authorities are currently preparing a mobile application, Peduli Jogja (Yogyakarta Cares), to regulate tour bus movement from Giwangan Terminal to the designated parking points at the three parking centers, Arif added.

Source: Antara News

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Hong Kong Wine & Dine Festival 2021 showroom for new culinary perspectives

The Hong Kong Wine & Dine Festival, organised by the Hong Kong Tourism Board (HKTB), has long been the city’s annual gastronomic extravaganza. This year, the festival is riding high on the city’s recovery, with an exciting month-long celebration in November that includes digital events as well as physical itineraries. This festival will serve as a bold reminder for foodies around the world that Hong Kong will continue to be at the top of the list of dining destinations in the post-COVID era.

The disruptions caused by the pandemic have not deterred the city from its enterprising ambitions. Despite the uncertainty, plenty of new restaurants have opened in the past year, adding to the already diverse and vibrant F&B scene.

As a “Showroom of New Culinary Perspectives”, this year’s festival will feature a wealth of refreshing experiences, including the innovative elevation of Chinese cuisine, an inspiring line-up of online masterclasses, and a roster of bright and bold F&B personalities, putting the spotlight on some of the brilliant minds that are carving a new niche in Hong Kong’s dining landscape.

New Era of Bartending

Cocktail lovers and green lifestyle enthusiasts should not miss the “Sustainable Cocktail” online masterclass hosted by Agung Prabowo of Penicillin bar, winner of Asia’s 50 Best Sustainable Bar Award for 2021. The award recognizes the creativity and effort that Prabowo and his partners put in to minimizing waste and reducing the bar’s carbon footprint. For example, potato peels are upcycled into bar snacks, and excess pieces of bread and cheese are infused into new spirits.

New Experience in Chinese Cuisine

Worth noting is “Chinese Omakase by Masterchefs”, a concept-driven, outside-the-box Chinese fine dining experience. This concept is loosely inspired by the original omakase-style, whereby a meal’s direction is left entirely up to the chef’s discretion, giving the chef creative freedom and the diner a memorable dining experience. Eighteen master chefs from revered Chinese restaurants across the city will spearhead the programme and showcase their mastery of techniques and innovations. For instance, Chef Chan Yan Tak from the Michelin 3-starred Lung King Heen will take diners on a tasting journey from sea to sky, while Chef Jayson Tang from Michelin 1-starred Man Ho Restaurant has created an innovative menu that is meticulously curated based on the relationship between the five elements: wood, fire, earth, metal and water.

New Energy to Shake Up Hong Kong’s Dining Scene

A promising line-up of rising culinary stars will be spotlighted in the campaign to acknowledge the city’s trendsetting talent. Chef Sandy Keung is one of the few female players in the male-dominated siu mei (roasted meats) industry with her brand Good BBQ. She also owns a cutting-edge seafood restaurant, which touts a unique ozone-depuration technique.

Source: Antara News

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Indonesia accentuates digital transformation-expediting strategies

Communications and Informatics Minister Johnny Gerard Plate highlighted Indonesia’s four-pronged approach to accelerate digital transformation to establish an ASEAN digital community at the ASEAN Leaders’ Statement on Advancing Digital Transformation in ASEAN.

The first strategy encompasses implementing a 2021-2024 Indonesia Digital Roadmap as a strategic guidance to realizing national digital transformation.

“Equal access to quality telecommunications services is the precondition for realizing digital transformation,” the minister said in a press release here on Wednesday.

Hence, the government continues to strive to build reliable and even connectivity to reduce the digital divide and increase the ratio of Internet connectivity among the country’s regions.

Indonesia also encourages the establishment of a regulation concerning cross-border data flow to ensure the protection of personal data.

Meanwhile, the fourth strategy focuses on promoting cooperation in recovering and strengthening resilience against the COVID-19 pandemic using digital technology through Indonesia’s presidency of the 2022 G20 Forum themed “Recover Together, Recover Stronger.”

Hence, Indonesia has also encouraged more intensive cooperation among ASEAN country members for conducting digital transformation in the region, as digitalization can be used to drive faster and inclusive economic recovery.

“We will rise together and recover stronger to realize a digitally connected ASEAN community,” Plate remarked.

Meanwhile, the ASEAN Leaders’ Statement on Advancing Digital Transformation in ASEAN was initiated by Brunei Darussalam, as the 2021 ASEAN chairman, to realize strategic, inclusive, and sustainable digital transformation in the region.

Hence, the meeting focused on intensifying cooperation between sectoral agencies and the ASEAN Community Pillars to expedite the region’s digital transformation and strengthen cybersecurity cooperation coordinated by the ASEAN Cybersecurity Coordinating Committee, as well as implement the ASEAN Digital Masterplan 2025.

Source: Antara News

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Bali prepares to welcome tourists as COVID cases decline

Indonesia has seen a drastic slump in COVID-19 cases over the past several weeks, which has triggered optimism of tourism reopening, particularly in Bali, one of the most famous tourist resorts globally.

Indonesia added 903 daily COVID-19 cases on October 19, 2021, bringing the total tally to 4,236,287, the Task Force for COVID-19 Response reported. Meanwhile, it recorded 50 daily deaths, bringing the total toll to 143,049, it added.

The nation has recorded a total of 4,076,541 COVID-19 recoveries so far, as per task force data.

Despite the significant fall in the number of COVID-19 cases, the government is still urging the public to remain disciplined in implementing the health protocols by wearing face masks, washing hands frequently, and keeping a safe distance.

The authorities have also maintained the frequency of 3Ts (testing, tracing, and treatment) to prevent virus spread.

In view of the decline in cases, the government reopened the provinces of Bali and Riau Islands, which shares a maritime border with Singapore, to foreign tourists on October 14, 2021.

The government has said it will consider reopening other tourist destinations to foreign tourists if the number of COVID-19 cases continues to decline and the handling of the pandemic keeps improving.

“We will continue to evaluate the policy. If it runs well, we will possibly add the number of tourism sites which will conduct the trial reopening,” Tourism and Creative Economy Minister, Sandiaga Uno, said in Aceh on October 19, 2021.

After restricting the arrivals of foreign travelers, the nation has decided to allow entry to nationals from 19 countries: Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates (UAE), New Zealand, Kuwait, Bahrain, Qatar, China, India, Japan, South Korea, Liechtenstein, Italy, France, Portugal, Spain, Sweden, Poland, Hungary, and Norway.

These countries have been selected after careful consideration of data, including their low COVID-19 positivity, Coordinating Minister for Maritime Affairs and Investment, Luhut Binsar Pandjaitan, said.

At present, foreign visitors can only enter Indonesia through the Bali and Riau Islands international airports.

International travelers are also required to present a limited visit visa, health insurance covering a COVID-19 positive diagnosis, proof of hotel reservation, and payment proof to officials upon arrival, according to the government’s spokesperson for COVID-19 Task Force, Wiku Adisasmito.

At a webinar entitled ‘Bali’s Readiness to Welcome International Tourists’, which was held on October 13, 2021, participants revealed that the island is eager to welcome international tourists, in keeping with all the procedures laid down by the regional and central governments.

Bali’s COVID-19 vaccination coverage has reached nearly 99 percent for the first dose and over 90 percent for the second dose.

In addition, most tourism businesses in Bali have received the Cleanliness, Health, Safety, and Environment Sustainability (CHSE) certification.

Deputy Governor of Bali, Tjok Oka Artha Ardhana Sukawati, affirmed that the people of Bali are ready to welcome international tourists owing to the high percentage of COVID-19 vaccinations.

Furthermore, the people of Bali have diligently complied with the health protocols during the pandemic, he added.

Meanwhile, state-owned airport operator Angkasa Pura (AP) I has confirmed that I Gusti Ngurah Rai International Airport has officially reopened for international flights.

AP I said it has made several preparations at the Ngurah Rai Airport for the reopening of international flights, including readying utilities, facilities, selecting officers who would serve passengers, and passenger arrival processes.

The airport, however, has not received any applications for international flight slots from any airline, I Gusti Ngurah Rai’s Angkasa Pura (AP) I spokesperson, Taufan Yudhistira, said on October 14, 2021.

Bali hopes to see arrivals of foreign tourists in November or December this year, he added.

Meanwhile, the Bali provincial government said it has created a guidebook for tourists on vacationing in the province amid the COVID-19 pandemic.

The guidebook will be handed to tourists during the self-isolation period and provides information on arrival protocols at the I Gusti Ngurah Rai International Airport and the health protocols that need to be implemented while traveling.

Once they arrive in Bali, foreign tourists need to undergo a five-day self-quarantine at one of the 35 hotels designated by the government.

“During the quarantine, we urge tourists to not leave their hotel rooms to avoid the transmission of the COVID-19 virus,” head of the Bali Provincial Tourism Office, Putu Astawa, said on October 19, 2021.

Tourists need to carry visas, complete COVID-19 vaccination certificates, and health insurance, with a minimum coverage value of $100 thousand and show they will cover the cost of COVID-19 treatment, he added.

They will also need to submit negative results of RT-PCR tests, taken a maximum of 72 hours before departure, and accommodation proof.

In addition, tourists will have to undergo two additional RT-PCR tests: once they arrive at the airport and on the fourth day of their quarantine.

Statistics Indonesia (BPS) has indicated that tourist arrivals in Bali have dropped by 99.99 percent compared to 2019, when they were recorded at 6,275,210.

Source: Antara News

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SonicWall returning choice to customers by securing any mix of cloud, hybrid and traditional networks

SonicWall, a global leader in physical, virtual and cloud-focused cybersecurity solutions, is emphasizing the return of customer choice for securing and scaling a mix of cloud, hybrid and traditional environments.

“Too many times organizations have been forced to change the way they operate in order to secure access to their networks, data, devices and people,” said SonicWall President and CEO Bill Conner. “We’ve been busy innovating cloud and virtual solutions that help organizations secure complex blends of networks, including virtual, hybrid, cloud and on-premises deployments.”

Debasish Mukherjee, Vice President of Sales, APAC, SonicWall added “The new normal has forced organizations in Asia Pacific to think about sustainable digitalization, which necessitates changes in the way they operate. Organizations in Asia Pacific are increasingly shifting their focus towards securing their cloud networks as part of their digitalization roadmap.”

SonicWall’s growing virtual, cloud and hybrid offerings leverage the best of the company’s Boundless Cybersecurity approach to return deployment choices to the customer while solving real-world use cases faced by SMBs, enterprises, governments and MSSPs. SonicWall’s core cloud solution offerings:

• Solve security and connectivity challenges for cloud-native and hybrid environments.

• Secure access to cloud and on-premises applications and virtualized workloads through modern zero-trust capabilities.

• Protect increasingly distributed and remote workforces through powerful virtualized security layers and zero-touch capabilities.

• Simplify threat detection and response by unifying security events and analytics in a single cloud-based dashboard, allowing easy visualization and management of high-risk alerts.

“The modern IT environment is rife with complexity that drives security and connectivity challenges, which can be further complicated when organizations require hybrid environments comprised of physical, virtual and SaaS offerings, and private and public cloud solutions,” said IDC Research Director Chris Rodriguez. “Cybersecurity vendors that support these deployment options add tremendous financial and operational flexibility for their customers, and are also well suited for organizations that are in different stages of their cloud journey.”

SonicWall Solves Today’s Complex Security, Connectivity Challenges

SonicWall’s cloud innovation is driven by the need to solve complex security and connectivity challenges by delivering power, flexibility and choice to customers and partners. SonicWall has collaborated with organizations worldwide to build some of the most secure and robust hybrid networks.

“The University of Pisa connects and secures a wide and distributed network of systems, users, applications and services to ensure our institution can provide the highest levels of on-campus and remote learning,” said University of Pisa CIO Antonio Cisternino. “It’s imperative that we’re able to use the same trusted security controls, regardless of how we deploy them. Through their growing range of virtual, cloud and hybrid offerings, SonicWall gives us that choice and flexibility without sacrificing the security standards we require to protect and enable students, faculty and staff.”

SonicWall ensures organizations are able to set their own deployment paths and cloud migration timelines — not forcing them into a rigid vendor-first approach. By providing cloud-based (e.g., virtual firewall and VPN), as-a-service (e.g., ZTNA, FWaaS) and on-premises (e.g., firewalls, VPN) options, SonicWall empowers customers to deploy what works for their architecture — and adopt cloud transformation at their pace.

These real-world hybrid environments are secured using a cohesive mix of virtual, cloud and on-premises offerings, including SonicWall NSv virtual firewalls, Cloud Edge Secure Access zero-trust security, appliance-free SMA virtual private networks (VPN), and Cloud App Security to protect SaaS applications.

Organizations are able to further scale and extend distributed environments by simultaneously deploying security across multiple locations — with minimal IT support — using Zero-Touch Deployment capabilities.

Implement Zero-Trust Security in as Few ‘15 Minutes’

With the influx of work-from-home access, companies require a simple and secure way of connecting their workforce to resources they need — wherever they’re located.

SonicWall embraces zero-trust security as a tenet of cybersecurity in a perimeter-less, cloud-first reality. SonicWall helps organizations easily and quickly connect remote users to on-premises resources, cloud-hosted applications, branch offices and public clouds.

In as few as 15 minutes, SonicWall Cloud Edge Secure Access — the company’s zero-trust network access (ZTNA) offering — quickly scales security beyond the perimeter through modern zero-trust principles. This results in logical trust zones that authenticate every user, device and location for secure access to only the specific services and resources they require.

Simplify Threat Detection, Visibility & Response

New in SonicWall Capture Security Center 3.0, Unified Insights brings analytics from across SonicWall products, including physical and virtual firewalls, wireless access points, switches and endpoint security products into a single, customizable dashboard. This provides a central, easy-to-use location for monitoring environments and troubleshooting incidents, eliminating the need to multi-task across different consoles.

Paired with SonicWall Analytics, Capture Security Center 3.0 can transform large volumes of data (spanning tens of thousands of firewall nodes) into actionable insights and defensive actions against hidden risks across networks, applications and users — all with the visibility, precision, speed and scale of the cloud.

Integrate Cloud-delivered Threat Protection Across Hybrid Environments

Regardless of deployment strategy, SonicWall ensures organizations can identify and block both known and unknown cyberattacks across traditional networks, public and private cloud infrastructure, and virtual environments by seamlessly integrating SonicWall physical and virtual firewalls when and where it makes sense for your business. The foundation of this ecosystem integrates with SonicWall’s cloud-based Advanced Threat Protection (ATP) multi-engine sandbox service to stop advanced cyberattacks, including never-before-seen malware and ransomware.

About SonicWall

SonicWall delivers Boundless Cybersecurity for the hyper-distributed era in a work reality where everyone is remote, mobile and unsecure. SonicWall safeguards organizations mobilizing for their new business normal with seamless protection that stops the most evasive cyberattacks across boundless exposure points and increasingly remote, mobile and cloud-enabled workforces. By knowing the unknown, providing real-time visibility and enabling breakthrough economics, SonicWall closes the cybersecurity business gap for enterprises, governments and SMBs worldwide. For more information, visit www.sonicwall.com or follow us on Twitter, LinkedIn, Facebook and Instagram.

Source: Antara News

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VP urges pesantrens to adapt to global, technological changes

Indonesian Vice President Ma’ruf Amin has urged pesantrens (Islamic boarding schools) to adapt to global changes and technological innovations to improve their competitiveness.

“Technology innovation poses a new challenge for pesantrens, as they should keep in pace with current changes and utilize the new knowledge for the best interest of the society,” Amin said in his keynote speech at a webinar held to commemorate the 2021 National Santri Day here Wednesday.

The National Santri Day was established by the Presidential Decree No.22/2015 to commemorate the Jihad Resolution that Muslim clerics and students of Islamic boarding schools declared on October 22, 1945 to fight against colonizers.

Pesantrens should be able to help santri (students of Islamic boarding schools) from Generation Z and Generation Alpha who have been exposed to digital media since an early age and ensure they remain relevant amidst future development, he added.

“If pesantrens do not adapt and transform themselves in keeping with global and technological changes, their existence could be threatened, and their graduates would be strangers in the future,” Amin remarked.

Santri should have a firm will to improve their personal quality and develop their boarding school so that it remains relevant and keeps pace with innovations and changes, he expounded.

“This condition demands current santris enhance their personal quality, including in academic and non-academic achievements, creative and competitive skills, as well as maintain their good morals,” the Vice President added.

He then expressed the hope that Indonesia’s pesantrens would assist each other by sharing new ideas and information.

Meanwhile, Religious Affairs Minister Yaqut Cholil Qoumas urged pesantrens and their santri to brace themselves to face challenges and opportunities in the future.

“I believe the santri will have a bright future as long as they prepare themselves and collaborate with each other for the common goal,” Qoumas remarked.

Source: Antara News

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