REPORT - ATF 2012 - MAANDO, INDONESIA: CNBC is one of the media partners for the ASEAN Tourism Forum (ATF) 2012 themed “ASEAN Tourism for Global Community of Nations.” In conjunction with the ATF, CNBC is holding a closed-door panel discussion and dinner for ministers, NTOs and other delegates attending the forum on January 11th at the Sintesa Peninsula Hotel.

The panel discussion will feature H.E. Mari Elka Pangestu (Minister of Tourism and Creative Economy of the Republic of Indonesia) and Dr. Somsak Pippopinyo (Director for Finance, Industry and Infrastructure Directorate, ASEAN) on the topic “Navigating Growth and Managing the Impact of Global Turmoil.”

Junji Sumitani, Vice President of Advertising Sales, CNBC in Asia Pacific said, “The tourism industry plays an important role in today’s global economy and is one that CNBC as a business news channel has always followed closely. We’re excited to be one of the partners of this forum. It’s not only a great opportunity to build closer ties with this sector, but also allows us to start off the year by driving a strategic discussion with the influential leaders in this sector to gain insights on what the future holds for this very dynamic industry."

H.E. Dr. Mari Elka Pangestu, Minister of Tourism and Creative Economy for Indonesia said, “We are pleased to have CNBC as one of the sponsors of this years ASEAN Tourism Forum. It enables us to further raise awareness of Tourisms contribution to the economies of Southeast Asia and its resilience in the face of global slowdown in world economy. This year marks the 31st anniversary of this event and we are all geared up to welcome over 1600 delegates to Indonesia to continue successfully promoting the ASEAN region as one tourist destination."

ATF is a cooperative regional effort to promote the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) region as one tourist destination. This annual event involves all the tourism industry sectors of the 10 member nations of ASEAN: Brunei Darussalam, Cambodia, Indonesia, Lao PDR, Malaysia, Myanmar, Philippines, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam.