Jakarta, Dec. 20 -- Indonesian President Prabowo Subianto said the tourism sector is a major source of foreign exchange and should be optimized to support the national economy, including by maintaining cleanliness across regions.

"Tourism is one of the best foreign exchange earners. How can we expect foreign tourists to come to Indonesia if our cities are slums and our villages are dirty?" he stated during his speech at the mass signing of subsidized housing loans in Serang, Banten, on Saturday.

Prabowo said that clean cities and villages are a crucial factor in attracting foreign tourists. Without a well-organized and comfortable environment, Indonesia will struggle to compete with other countries, he added.

To achieve this, he said t...