Indonesia’s Digital Tourism Diplomacy : Enhancing ASEAN Regional Cooperation Through Virtual Cultural Exchanges in The COVID Era 2020-2022

Abstract

As we know, a few years ago, especially in 2020, the world was shocked by the emergence of the Covid-19 virus. Where this virus is categorized as dangerous and can spread throughout the world quickly. The emergence of Covid-19 which is increasingly spreading certainly has an impact on all sectors. The tourism sector is no exception, of course there is a limitation of the activities of the entire community. This can be reflected in the number of international flights that have dropped dramatically in this era due to various travel restriction rules launched by the government such as PSBB and others which have made the international tourism sector even worse. Not wanting to drag on the problem, made ASEAN member countries, especially Indonesia, rack their brains to create new innovations so that Indonesia's tourism sector can revive. This research will further explain the role of Indonesia's digital diplomacy in encouraging social inclusion, focusing on the ASEAN digital literacy program as a research case study. Before getting further into the research, we need to know the definition of digital diplomacy. In short, digital diplomacy is a government effort that uses information technology media to achieve diplomatic goals in the international arena, which in this case is to encourage the process of social inclusion through increasing digital literacy in ASEAN member countries. This research uses a descriptive qualitative approach with a case study that aims to associate how the ASEAN digital literacy program led by Indonesia has contributed to social inclusion in the ASEAN region itself.