Jakarta, March 18 -- Efforts aimed at developing tourism villages should be exerted in tandem with the preservation of the living environment and local wisdom, Deputy Speaker of the People's Consultative Assembly (MPR) Lestari Moerdijat stated.

Moerdijat remarked that the development of tourism villages should also result in economic benefits for the local residents.

"All parties should provide support for efforts aimed at developing tourism villages in the hopes of boosting the rural economy and preserving local wisdom and the environment," she noted in a statement issued by her office in Jakarta on Sunday (March 17).

Moerdijat emphasized the need to tap into potentials possessed by Indonesian villages to accelerate growth and solidif...