WAKATOBI, a group of four tiny islands in the Southeast Sulawesi Province in Indonesia, will host the next UCLG ASPAC Council Meeting in September 2015. At least 200 foreign delegations and around 100 local representatives are expected to participate at this event organized by the Wakatobi Regency Local Government. The Meeting will take place in Wangi-Wangi Island,one of the islands that make up the Wakatobi Archipelago.
The name Wakatobi is an acronym of the names of the islands that form the archipelago : Wangi-Wangi, Kaledupa, Tomia, Binongko.
“We are very pleased to host such an international event in our regency,” said Abdul Manan, Wakatobi’s Regional Development Planning Agency Chief Planning, when he recently visited the UCLG ASPAC Secretariat.
Wakatobi has become a famous tourist destination for diving and snorkelling, due to its strategic location as the centre of the Coral Triangle Region. Wakatobi is also well-known for its extraordinary marine life diversity and beauty.
Manan also said that the number of tourists coming to Wakatobi has been sharply escalating in the past few years. Recent data shows that the total number of tourists visiting Wakatobi in 2014, amounts to 14,000 people, a much higher than the 3,000 in 2006.
Manan strongly hopes that by hosting the UCLG ASPAC Council Meeting, Wakatobi’s reputation as a marine tourism spot in Southeast Sulawesi Province can grow even more. (MH)
