Wakatobi is also the name of a national park established in 1996, with a total area of 1.39 million hectares that consists of marine biodiversity hotspot known as Wallacea and coral reefs, which condition and scale occupy one of the highest priorities of marine conservation in Indonesia. Wakatobi islands is a part of the Coral Triangle, which contains one of the richest marine biodiversity on earth.
Before becoming an autonomous region, the Wakatobi Regency was known as the Tukang Besi Islands. The name Wakatobi is an acronym of the names of the four main islands that form the archipelago: Wangi-wangi Island, Kaledupa, Tomia, and Binongko.
In the pre-independence period, Wakatobi was under the authority of the Sultanate of Buton.
After Indonesia gained independence, and Southeast Sulawesi was established as a province, the Wakatobi region only constituted of several districts within the territory of the Regency of Buton.
On 18 December 2003, Wakatobi was officially designated as one of the enlarged regencies in Southeast Sulawesi that was established by virtue of Law of the Republic of Indonesia Number 29 of 2003 on the Establishment of the Regency of Bombana, Regency of Wakatobi and Regency of North Kolaka.
When first established, Wakatobi only consisted of five districts namely District of Wangi-Wangi, District of Wangi Selatan, District of Kaledupa, District of Tomia and District of Binongko. In 2005, by virtue of the Regulation of the Regency of Wakatobi Number 19 of 2005, the District of South Kaledupa was established, and, by virtue of the Regulation of the Regency of Wakatobi Number 20 of 2005, the District of East Tomia was established. In 2007, by virtue of the Regulation of the Regency of Wakatobi Number 41 of 2007, the District of Togo Binongko was established and this brought the total number of districts in the Regency of Wakatobi to 8 districts, which were divided into 100 subdistricts and villages (25 subdistricts and 75 villages).
The Wakatobi National Park is one of 50 National Parks in Indonesia, which is located in the Regency of Wakatobi, Southeast Sulawesi. It officially became a National Park in 1996 and has a total area of 1,39 million hectares. It possesses a marine biodiversity with a scale and condition that ranks it as one of the highest priorities in marine conservation in Indonesia. The depth of waters in this national park varies, with the deepest part reaching 1,044 meters below sea level. The Wakatobi National Park features:
- Coral Reefs;
- Fishes;
- Other animals;
- Specificalty; and
- Hoga Island.