VOI - Voice of Indonesia | RRI - Radio Republik Indonesia

Indonesia and Japan agreed to collaborate in the development and operation of a 100 Gigabyte per second (Gbps) network for research and education sectors by inking a memorandum of understanding (MoU) here on Wednesday evening.

The cooperation will be conducted by Indonesia’s state college Brawijaya University (UB) and the Indonesia Research and Education Network (IdREN) with Japan’s Arterial Research and Educational Network in the Asia Pacific (ARENA-PAC).

The signing of the agreement was witnessed by Indonesian Communication and Informatics Minister Johnny G. Plate and Minister for Digital Affairs of Japan Kono Taro.

Ambassador of Indonesia to Japan and Micronesia Heri Akhmadi as well as Secretary of the Directorate General of Higher Education, Research, and Technology at the Education, Culture, Research, and Technology Ministry Tjitjik Srie Tjahjandarie were also present at the occasion.

The ARENA-PAC’s 100 Gbps network will connect IdREN with UB as the gateway, through Guam to Tokyo and also to several other locations.

The opening of this network is a big leap for advancing Indonesia since its speed is 100 times higher than the existing network connecting Indonesia to the current global research and education network with the Bandung Institute of Technology (ITB) as the gateway.

Through development of the new network, more than 82 universities and various research institutions, which are currently connected to IdREN, will be able to exchange data faster with their counterparts abroad as well as have private facilities to conduct experiment on the network.

"I believe this high-speed network will provide opportunities to implement the Freedom in Learning and Campus (MBKM) activities," the rector of UB, Widodo, remarked.

Meanwhile, Chairperson of IdREN Achmad Affandi has said that connecting the IdREN network with the ARENA-PAC’s 100 Gbps network will improve domestic education and research infrastructure as well as expedite cooperation in the two sectors at the regional and global levels.

"Students, researchers, and lecturers will have access to high-definition data, cloud, AI (artificial intelligent) computing and multimedia communications, as well as collaboration opportunities with global universities or research institutions," he affirmed.

Co-Director of ARENA-PAC Jun Murai stated that development of the 100 Gbps network with IdREN will create a great milestone for the future, not only for Indonesia but also for the Asia-Pacific region.

He also expects that the network will contribute to cooperation between Indonesia and other Asia-Pacific countries as well as other nations in the world to create a better future. (Antaranews)

Minister of Communication and Informatics Johnny G. Plate held a bilateral meeting from Wednesday to Thursday with several ministers in the digital sector of G20 member countries, representatives of other countries, and international organizations.

The meeting discussed support for three priority issues in the G20 Digital Economy Working Group (DEWG) and preparations for the G20 Digital Economy Ministers Meeting (DEMM) held on Thursday.

“I just completed a bilateral meeting between Indonesia and Germany, discussing preparations for the DEMM. We hope that the next meeting will run well to yield materials as a reference to the Leaders Summit in mid-November," Plate noted after attending a bilateral meeting with State Secretary of the German Federal Ministry of Digital and Transport, Stefan Schnorr, here.

The DEMM is part of the Sherpa Track of G20 Indonesia's forum and has been organized to follow up on the negotiation result of the Digital Economic Working Group (DEWG). The DEMM is being held in Bali on September 1-2, 2022.

Plate later said that the issue of cross-border data flow and data free flow with trust had caught the attention of the G20 countries' delegates.

“Indonesia submitted a proposal for cross-border data governance principles, including lawfulness, fairness, and transparency, which were approved. This was a tremendous step forward among the G20 members, who have agreed to one universal principle, cross-border data flow based on transparency, lawfulness, and fairness," Plate remarked.

In addition to discussions related to DEWG and DEMM G20, the minister discussed opportunities for cooperation with countries in the field of information and communication technology (ICT) and the digital sector from upstream to downstream, including Argentina, Spain, and India.

On Wednesday, Plate held a bilateral meeting with representatives from Argentina, South Africa, Germany, India, Japan, and Britain. On Thursday morning, the minister was scheduled to continue the meeting with Australia, the United Arab Emirates, and Saudi Arabia.

In addition to the G20 countries, the minister held bilateral meetings with Singapore, Cambodia, the Netherlands, and Spain. Meanwhile, international organizations, including the International Telecommunication Union (ITU) and the Economics and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (ESCAP), were also present at the meeting.

Later, Minister Plate would open the G20 DEMM to discuss the draft declaration of "The Bali Package" that would be finalized by the ministers in the digital sector. (Antaranews)

Cooperatives and Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) Minister Teten Masduki has said that his ministry is supporting the entry of Papua MSMEs into the digital ecosystem.

One form of this support has been the provision of assistance through the Integrated Business Service Center (PLUT) for Cooperatives and MSMEs.

After inaugurating the Papua Cooperatives and MSMEs' PLUT in Mandala village here on Wednesday, Masduki said that PLUTs have an essential role in assisting MSMEs so that their products can be marketed either through the e-catalogue of the government or e-commerce.

"The goal is that Papuan MSME products can enter a wider market through the digital market. Thus, we are encouraging PLUTs to continue to assist MSMEs to enter the digital ecosystem," he said.

The MSMEs that PLUTs assist are advised to pick products that have local flagship value and are unique in Papua, he informed.

The MSME products must be sorted into those that are targeted for the local market, national market, and international market, he said.

The Papua PLUT could help obtain distribution permits for products made by the MSMEs that it assists and help them access business capital, he added.

"The Papua PLUT can become a pilot (project) for the implementation of smallholder business credit (KUR) so that MSMEs can access business capital through KUR clusters, which can reach a maximum ceiling of Rp500 million," he said.

Meanwhile, assistant for the economy and people's welfare division at the Papua Regional Secretariat, Muhammad Musa’ad, said that his party has also launched a local e-catalogue as a form of commitment to maximizing regional budget (APBD) spending on local products.

"Then, for MSME development, the Papua provincial government has the Papeda program that offers interest-free (business) capital for MSMEs," he pointed out.

He informed that the program is now being carried out selectively by targeting MSMEs that are considered to have the potential to develop.  (Antaranews)

Australian Defence Minister Richard Marles said on Wednesday Papua New Guinea had proposed a security treaty between both countries amid increasing tensions in the Pacific islands after China struck a security pact with neighbouring Solomon Islands.

PNG Foreign Minister Justin Tkatchenko also told ABC Television he had discussed a security treaty with his Australian counterpart Penny Wong during her visit to Port Moresby on Tuesday, while Wong told ABC the discussions were in a "very early stage."

The Solomon Islands has had a tense relationship with the United States and its Pacific allies since striking a security pact with China in April. Australia, New Zealand and other Pacific island countries have said security needs should be met within the region.

"This is an idea that has been put forward by PNG," Marles told ABC radio on Wednesday.

"We have been making it really clear we want to be as close to PNG as we can be. We want to build on the already close military to military relationship that we have with Papua New Guinea, which we see as one of the most important military to military relationships that we have," he added.

Papua New Guinea is Australia's closest northern neighbour, separated by only a few kilometres, and a former colony, but has increasing trade and investment ties with China.

China failed to reach a sweeping trade and security pact with 10 Pacific nations including PNG in June.

Australia and the United States are funding the upgrade of a naval base on PNG's Manus Island, after a failed Chinese offer to redevelop a naval base in 2018.

Chinese navy vessels transit through the narrow Torres Strait separating Australia and PNG, with the activity becoming a point of friction in February when a Chinese ship directed a laser at an Australian military surveillance aircraft in flight over Australia's northern approaches.

The Solomon Islands, which has maritime borders with PNG and Australia, on Tuesday said it was suspending port visits by foreign navies until it puts in place a new approval process.

Marles declined to comment directly on whether Australia had been notified of the moratorium on port visits, after the United States government received notice a week after a U.S. coast guard vessel was unable to make a port call in Honiara.

"We want to see Australia be the natural partner of choice for the countries of the Pacific, that is not something that we take for granted," he said. (Reuters)