East Java and Uzbekistan Strengthen Religious Tourism Ties

RRI.CO.ID, Surabaya - East Java Province and Uzbekistan have strengthened bilateral cooperation on Sunday, April 5, 2026, to solidify cooperation in religious tourism and cultural exchange.

Uzbekistan’s Ambassador to Indonesia, Oybek Eshonov, alongside Samarkand Governor Adiz Boboev and Deputy Governor Rustam Kobilov met with East Java Governor Khofifah Indar Parawansa at Grahadi State Building in Surabaya.

“The Uzbek delegation arrived in full, including the Imam of the Imam Bukhari Mosque and various academics. We also invited prominent scholars from various Islamic boarding schools across East Java,” said Governor Khofifah, on Sunday, as quoted by Antara.

Central to the discussion is the shared lineage of Islamic propagation. Governor Khofifah emphasized that legendary figures of the Wali Songo, such as Sunan Giri and Maulana Malik Ibrahim, possess historical ties to the Samarkand region.

This ancestral link is expected to serve as a primary catalyst for developing specialized pilgrimage packages, particularly for East Javanese residents wishing to visit the tomb of the great hadith collector, Imam Bukhari.

“This has the potential to become a new attraction for the people of East Java for religious tourism,” she remarked.

To translate these spiritual ties into economic reality, the East Java Provincial Administration has begun involving tourism industry players and travel agencies to map out collaboration opportunities with the Samarkand administration.

A critical component of this roadmap is the push for enhanced transportation connectivity, including the potential for direct flights from Indonesia to Samarkand or Tashkent.

Governor Khofifah stressed that such infrastructure is vital to deepening people-to-people relations. "Strengthening this connectivity is expected to strengthen the relationship between communities, especially in the development of religious tourism and cultural exchange."

Samarkand Governor Adiz Boboev echoed this sentiment, expressing a desire for the partnership to transcend spiritual tourism and touch upon broader regional prosperity. “We want to develop cooperation in the fields of economy, tourism, and mutual welfare with East Java.”

As both provinces move toward concrete implementation, the partnership stands as a modern revival of ancient spiritual and commercial routes. These paths once connected the Indonesian archipelago directly to the heart of Central Asia. ***

⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠