JKT48 Named “Enjoy Jakarta” Ambassador

The Jakarta Tourism and Culture Office continues to drive the growth of foreign tourists visiting the capital city, for the reason that the city’s tourism industry has the potential to attract the attention of foreign tourists.

In order to see this growth materialize, the Tourism and Culture Office is collaborating with various parties in order to promote the city’s attractions. One such collaboration being made by the Office is recruiting the youth idol group JKT48, which was formed in 2011 adopting the concept of Japanese idol group AKB48.

The signing of a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) specifically for promotion activities took place on Tuesday (October 7) afternoon at the office of the Jakarta Tourism and Culture Office, with Dentsu Aegis Network/Indonesia acting as JKT48 management. Arie Budhiman, Head of the Jakarta Tourism and Culture Office, and Harris Thajeb, Country CEO of Dentsu Aegis Network/Indonesia, were signatories of the memorandum.

In a statement, Arie Budhiman said that his office has a number of strategies and special programs designed to increase promotional activity for the city’s tourism. “One of our primary target markets for Jakarta tourism is Japan. Therefore, we were interested in appealing to the Japanese market further through the collaboration of tourism activities with JKT48,” he said.

Arie revealed that JKT48 was invited to become a brand ambassador for the city of Jakarta because the group is popular not only in Indonesia, but also in Japan. “By bringing in the girls of JKT48, we are optimistic that they will bring a positive image to the city and improve its tourism promotional activities both in Indonesia and in Japan,” he said.

Arie explained that the Tourism and Culture Office chose JKT48 because they are a spirited and motivated group of youth singers which is part of a wide network of the Japanese entertainment group AKB48. “Our choice also represents the booming population of the younger generation. We are not only considering the present, but how will Jakarta’s future development be promoted among the city’s younger generation? We are optimistic that JKT48 is an effective brand for promoting the city’s tourism,” he explained.

According to Arie, JKT48 will also be involved in a series of domestic and overseas promotional activities as part of the collaboration. “One of Jakarta’s tourism promotional activities is the city’s arts scene. Of course, they will take part in some of our programs, such as Jakarta Tourism Expo and Road Show Jakarta, in a number of countries, including tourism promotion in Tokyo,” he continued.

Harris Thajeb, CEO of Dentsu Aegis Network/Indonesia, affirmed that the collaboration will bring the relationship of Indonesia and Japan closer. He asserted, “The Jakarta Tourism Office also hopes that AKB48 will be able to come and see Indonesia’s beauty and Jakarta’s tourism potential, and in turn promoting them to the Japanese people. Japanese visitors to Indonesia will then not only visit Bali, but also travel to Jakarta.”

He added that Japanese tourists visit Bali in order to view the beautiful panorama of its beaches. On the other hand, traveling to Jakarta will allow travelers to see the scale of Indonesia’s metropolitan areas. Aside from skyscrapers, Jakarta has the potential for a culinary tourism scene because Indonesians from around the country gather in the city. “The city’s beauty, culinary tourism, and the friendliness of the capital’s residents can potentially become tourism aspects to be promoted to Japanese tourists,” he concluded.