Makassar Tourism Polytechnic (Poltekpar Makassar) is a higher education institution under the Indonesian Ministry of Tourism, focused on producing outstanding professionals in the tourism sector. Established in 1991, Poltekpar Makassar has undergone a transformation from a Tourism Education and Training Center, to a Tourism Academy, and finally to a Tourism Polytechnic in 2015.
With “VERY GOOD” accreditation from BAN-PT and eight leading study programs, Poltekpar Makassar continues to innovate through industry-based curricula and modern facilities, ready to produce globally competitive graduates.
The Tourism Education and Training Center (BPLP), inaugurated on September 18, 1991, was the forerunner of the current Makassar Tourism Polytechnic. The Ujung Pandang BPLP was initiated by Mr. Ir. Yonathan L. Parapak, then Secretary General of the Department of Tourism, Post and Telecommunications, and Prof. Dr. Ahmad Amiruddin, Governor of South Sulawesi, with the late Drs. I Wayan Bendhi as its first Director. The establishment of the BPLP in Ujung Pandang was intended to address the shortage of professionals in the tourism sector.
Initially, the Ujung Pandang BPLP was established with a certificate program. Only a year later, it opened a Diploma 2 program for study programs in Front Office, Housekeeping, Catering, and Culinary Arts.
After graduating its first Diploma 2 program in 1994, BPLP launched a Diploma 2 program in Travel and Tourism Business and a Diploma 3 (D3) program (a one-year extension of the Diploma 2 (D2) program in Hospitality. In addition, BPLP also provides training in tourism business and tourism management for civil servants (PNS) in Eastern Indonesia.
Two years later, the university launched a Diploma III (D3) program with study programs in Room Division Management, Catering Management, Catering Management, and Travel Business Management. In the same year, it collaborated with the British Council to provide teaching staff.
In 1997, the institution changed its name to the Makassar Tourism Academy (AKPAR) in accordance with Ministerial Decree KM.27/OT.001/MPPT97. At that time, a collaboration was also established with the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) and Alliance Francaise to provide teaching staff and learning resources. AKPAR Makassar subsequently collaborated with AUSAID (Australian Agency for International Development) to provide teaching staff and the MARA Institute (Malaysia) to send teaching staff.
As an extension of the previous collaboration, the Makassar State Tourism Academy was appointed by AUSAID as a four-year Makassar Tourism Training Pilot Project. The implementation of this collaboration included competency-based training and testing in the tourism sector, as well as sending 12 lecturers to study at the Canberra Institute of Technology in Australia.
In 2007, the Makassar Tourism Academy (AKPAR) collaborated with the Ministry of National Education on a National Workshop on Synergy between the Makassar Tourism Academy and the Directorate General of Higher Education. Subsequently, Akpar Makassar received accreditation from the National Accreditation Board for all its departments.
A year later, AKPAR Makassar moved to a new campus on Jl. Gunung Rinjani in the Tanjung Bunga Independent City area. Previously, the AKPAR Makassar campus was located on Jl. Cenderawasih. The new campus covers approximately 16 hectares and is equipped with a range of teaching and learning facilities and international-standard laboratory facilities.
In 2009, Makassar State Tourism Academy opened a Diploma IV Program in affiliation with STP Nusa Dua Bali and obtained a license from BNSP to operate a Tourism Certification Institute (LSP).
In 2015, the Makassar Tourism Academy changed its status to the Makassar Tourism Polytechnic. The inauguration of this status change was attended by the Minister of Tourism of the Republic of Indonesia, Dr. Ir. Arief Yahya, M.Sc.