REPUBLIKA.CO.ID, JAKARTA -- The water of Lake Toba in North Sumatra must be clean from fish cages before President Joko Widodo (Jokowi) visits the area in December 2016, according to Coordinating Maritime Affairs Minister Rizal Ramli.

"Currently, several fish cages can be found in Lake Toba, and daily, hundreds of tons of unconsumed fish food and fish carcasses fester in the waters and pollute the lake," the minister remarked during the Culture Night Toward Lake Toba Authority Board here on Wednesday night.

Ramli said the local fish farmers will be provided with farming and fishing technologies that are environmentally friendly and do not pollute the lake.

President Joko Widodo is scheduled to visit North Sumatra again in December; hence, steps need to be taken to tackle the pollution caused by fish cages and fish feces in Lake Toba prior to his visit.

Removal of fish cages from the lake should be done as part of the steps to realize the establishment of the Lake Toba Authority Board in a bid to boost tourism in the area.

The Government of Indonesia is making every effort to accelerate the development of Lake Toba area into a main tourist destination in the country.

Lake Toba has been designated by the government as an international-standard tourist destination in an effort to improve the living conditions of the local population.

The central government has set numerous steps to accelerate the development of Lake Toba area.

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