VOI - Voice of Indonesia | RRI - Radio Republik Indonesia

VOINews, Jakarta - Officials from the Ministry of Villages, Development of Disadvantaged Regions, and Transmigration (Kemendes PDTT) and several village heads are visiting Dongziguan village in Fuyang, Hangzhou city, China, to study sustainable village development practices.

"Apart from that, the village heads will also learn how Dongziguan village maintains cultural heritage, as well as share experiences with village communities in China," director general of transmigration area (PPKTrans) development at the ministry, Danton Ginting, informed in a statement released in Jakarta on Friday.

It is hoped that the visit will strengthen cooperation between the two countries in promoting sustainable village development, he said.

Dongziguan village has a history of more than 1,500 years, and it is an attractive destination for a benchmarking study because the village has cultural heritage and is rich in Chinese historical sites, he added.

He said that Dongziguan village has preserved nearly a hundred ancient buildings dating back to the end of the Qing Dynasty and the beginning of the civil war, including the Xu's grand family mansion, Anya Hall, Long Pool Hall, Yue Shi Temple, Chunhe Hall, and Zhu Jia Hall.

The benchmarking study is being conducted from October 15–25, 2023. A total of 20 village heads from several Indonesian provinces have joined the visit to network and exchange ideas and experiences with villages in China.

The benchmarking study is the result of a collaboration between the Ministry of Village PDTT of the Republic of Indonesia and the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs (MARA) of China.

Ginting said that during the study, each delegate will exchange knowledge and best practices in an effort to achieve common goals in the sustainable development of rural areas.

"This collaboration is an important milestone in rural development in both countries," he added. (Antaranews)