The Indonesian Embassy in Beirut has acknowledged its continued support for trade cooperation improvement between Indonesia and Lebanon. Indonesian Ambassador to Lebanon Hajriyanto Y Thohari gave the Primaduta Award to Lebanese businessman and importer, George R Fattouh. The award was given for his service in helping market Indonesian products in Paris from the Middle East. The award was given at a ceremony at the Indonesian Embassy in Beirut, Thursday (11/1) Fatough, is the owner of George R. Fattouh S.A.L, a business that has been importing Indonesian products since the 1980s. It has a range of products, including: palm oil and its derivatives, oil and fats (including cocoa butter substitute, fat spread, hydrogenated palm kernel oil, and lauric confectionery fats), cardboard, stationary, and school equipment. Some Indonesian products are now even available at famous retail networks, such as Spinney’s and Carrefour. In 2022, the value imported by George R. Fattough S.A.L of Indonesian products, was 981.3 million USD. This was a 149.5 million USD increase when compared to 2021. Fattouh said Indonesian products are known for their quality and are in high demand in Lebanese markets. However, he said, the challenge now is increasing freight costs due to security challenges in the region.
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Listeners, a number of delicious dishes were served to the guests of Dhaup Ageng Pura Pakualaman Yogyakarta, at the wedding reception of the youngest son of K.G.P.A.A. Paku Alam X, namely B.P.H. Kusumo Kuntonugroho with Laily Annisa Kusumastuti which was held on January 10, 2024.Head of the Customs and Accommodation Division, Dhaup Ageng Pura Pakualaman, KRT Radyo Wisroyo said that the menu served to guests was quite varied. These menus are typical menus prepared by Pakualaman Pura, Indonesian menus and western food menus were also available. All invited guests including VIP and VVIP guests got the same menu. The first menu served to welcome guests, namely two types of welcome drink, namely lime lemongrass and ginger drink with lime. The welcome drink was given when guests sat down and watched the Bedhaya Sidamukti and Bedhaya Kakung Indrawidagda dance performances. Next, they gotsnacks for appetizer such as croquettes and other light snacks. There is a snack that is considered quite special and rare called Garulina. Garulina was the opening snack at the Pahargyan Dhaup Ageng Pakualaman lunch on the first day. Garulina has been around since the era before Indonesian independence. Garulina is actually not a typical Central Javanese food. It looks like the Lapis Legit layered cake, but there is something different, because there is a special layer like vla which is made from fresh milk, eggs and sugar. To get this sweet snack, Pakulaman Temple has to place a special order from the third generation of makers who have been pioneering since the 1950s. In Jogja, Garulina is very difficult to find and is considered rare because it is not sold every day.
ViewThe Indonesian Embassy in Bratislava in Slovakia on June 24 held an annual Indonesia-Slovak business meeting with the theme "Business without Boundary: Expanding Market Access for Indonesian and Slovak Businessmen". This activity was the third meeting that aimed to build bridges between entrepreneurs from the two countries, particularly in the trade and investment sectors.
This year, a one-on-one business matching meeting was held in a hybrid manner between 6 Slovak and Indonesian entrepreneurs. The entrepreneurs come from the food and beverages sector, such as canned food, coffee, tea, bio and halal products, defense equipment as well as the labor sector. From these six business matching meetings, 3 companies from Slovakia have agreed to follow up the results of this business matching in the near future. The implementation of this business matching is a follow-up to the Virtual Business Clinic activity organized by the Indonesian Embassy in Bratislava on June 9, 2021 for Indonesian MSME players to penetrate the Slovak market.
Indonesian Ambassador to Bratislava, Adiyatwidi Adiwoso said that "Slovakia is Indonesia's trading partner in the Central European Region and has the potential to become Indonesia's market hub in the Central and Eastern Europe Region. On one hand, geographically, Slovakia has a very strategic location because it is in “The Heart of Europe.” On the other hand, Indonesia can become the hub of the Slovak market in the ASEAN and Pacific Regions. Although up to now there have been trade relations, it is seen that there is still opportunity to improve relations in several sectors, and to increase the number of trade.
This annual business meeting activity is also the beginning of the implementation of the Indonesia - Central Europe Countries (INA-CEE) Business Forum activities. The event will be held by the Indonesian Ministry of Foreign Affairs on July 14, 2021 in a hybrid manner, in order to improve economic relations between Indonesia - Central and Eastern Europe.
Director General of Economic Cooperation at the Slovak Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Dusan Matulay as a key speaker from Slovakia appreciated this annual meeting. Even during the pandemic, trade between Indonesia and Slovakia is still relatively stable and Indonesia has a surplus. It was explained that Indonesia-Slovak cooperation could be developed in several sectors, such as information technology, medical devices, services, food (wheat), and others. According to Matulay, this kind of forum needs to be continuously supported by Slovak entrepreneurs.
Indonesian Ambassador to Qatar, Ridwan Hassan met Minister of Education and Higher Teaching of Qatar, Mohammed Abdul Wahed Al Hammadi in Doha on Tuesday (22/6) to discuss the increasing educational cooperation between the two countries. Based on the data of the Ministry of Education and Higher Teaching of Qatar, currently, there are about 2,000 Indonesian students and university students in Qatar. They are in various levels of education, starting from elementary to higher education.
The Indonesian Embassy in Doha, last Wednesday (23/6) in its written statement said that most of them study in Qatar because they follow their parents who work in Qatar. Some of them study because of their own willingness in one of the richest countries in the world. Several Indonesian university students are listed as recipients of full scholarships from the Qatari government. Besides the university students, the Government of Qatar also gives scholarships to students. Currently, there are at least 11 Indonesian students who are studying at Ma'had Diniy, namely at the high school level, who have received scholarships from the Qatari government.
At the meeting, Ambassador Ridwan expressed his appreciation to the government of Qatar and hopes that there will be more university students and students from Indonesia to obtain the opportunity to study in Qatar, particularly through scholarships.
Moreover, he also invited more Qatari students to study in Indonesia. He further said as a country which continuously grows and is a major player in the region, it is very important for other countries, including Qatar, to know more about Indonesia. Particularly, Minister Hammadi is interested in the existence of Indonesia International Islamic University. He hopes there is something real that can be done by the Qatari government to help Indonesian government.
Furthermore, Minister Hammadi on the occasion also expressed his congratulations and appreciation for the election of Indonesia as a partner country in organizing ‘Year of Culture 2023’. The Year of Culture is the largest cultural festival in Qatar.
Indonesia is the first country in the Southeast Asian region to be selected as a partner country in the event.
on June 7 the Ministry of Media and Information (Medinfo) BEM Universitas Airlangga (UNAIR) Surabaya launched an ‘ASA UNAIR application offline’ in the Amerta Hall, Rectorate Building Campus C. ASA UNAIR is an acronym for "Aplikasi Bersama Arek UNAIR". According to the Minister of Medinfo, BEM UNAIR, Rahmat Bayu, this application was created to answer the concerns of students at UNAIR as well as to realize ideas related to making applications. UNAIR students are confused about how to carry out their organizational activities during online lectures.
Rahmat further stated that ASA UNAIR application features the form of scholarships, internships, job opportunities, academic information, information of ORMAWA (Student Organization), as well as the marketplace. Besides facilitating, the ASA UNAIR application is also able to assist students in developing and establishing collaborations related to projects. This application also displays academic information, such as scientific projects and scientific works of UNAIR students. While for the ORMAWA feature, students can describe their work program or promote their organization.
As for promotion, Rahmat added, the marketplace feature is intended for students who have businesses or are starting a business so that they can promote their business at ASA UNAIR. Thereby, this application not only displays information, but also provides a profitable and facilitated bonus for students and registers for ASA UNAIR. Rahmat also said that currently, the ASA UNAIR application can be downloaded on the play-store for Android users. As for iPhone users, this application is still projected in the future so that all students, both using Android and IOS, can enjoy ASA UNAIR features.
Havana City in Cuba and Ambon City in Indonesia are exploring "sister-city cooperation" in the fields of music and education. This was stated by Ambassador of the Republic of Indonesia to Cuba, Nana Juliana in a webinar of the Global Center of Excellence and International Cooperation for Creative Economy, which was facilitated by the Ministry of Tourism and Creative Economy of the Republic of Indonesia on Monday (21/6). He said that Indonesia and Cuba have established bilateral relations for 60 years. Both countries support each other in every international activity.
Diplomatic relations of both countries began on January 22nd, 1960, marked by the visit of the first president of Indonesia, Soekarno to Havana. President Soekarno was also a close friend of Prime Minister Fidel Castro. Thus, Soekarno's arrival to Cuba became the beginning of diplomatic relations between Indonesia and Cuba.
During the webinar on Monday, Cuban Ambassador to Indonesia, Tania Velazquez welcomed the planned cooperation with Ambon City. Ambon and Havana were awarded by UNESCO as music and creative cities respectively in October 2019. This collaboration will strengthen Indonesia's diplomacy and encourage connectivity and both countries’ people-to-people contacts.
Meanwhile, Minister of Tourism and Creative Economy, Sandiaga Uno, who officially opened the webinar, said that the collaboration between Havana and Ambon is an example of cooperation in the music industry in the future. The webinar was held coinciding with the commemoration of International Music Day 21st of June. According to Minister Sandiaga Uno, this is a momentum to celebrate one of the greatest human creations in the world, namely music. Indonesian music would be less lively without Ambon; so would Cuba without Havana!
The Indonesian Embassy in Tokyo and University of Osaka signed a cooperation agreement in the fields of food, biotechnology and health to promote sustainable development goals and deal with the crisis as a consequence of the global impact of the Covid-19 pandemic. The Indonesian Embassy in its written statement in Tokyo on Saturday (18/6) stated that the cooperation was signed by Indonesian Ambassador to Japan, Heri Akhmadi and President of Osaka University, Shojiro Nishio in Osaka on Friday (18/6). The agreement is a follow-up of the visit of Japanese Prime Minister, Yoshihide Suga to Indonesia in October 2020.
Ambassador Heri Akhmadi affirmed that Indonesia believes the global community must work more closely to cope with the global crisis caused of the Covid-19 pandemic. Since no one country has been able to overcome this Covid-19 pandemic without collaborating with other countries. He also explained that international cooperation between Indonesia and Japan in response to the global pandemic is very important. Thus, the Indonesian Embassy in Tokyo welcomes the efforts to strengthen the existing and future cooperation between Indonesia and Japan, particularly among stakeholders in the fields of health, food and biotechnology.
Besides, Ambassador Heri further said that communication with related parties in Indonesia needs to be done by the Ministry of Health, Ministry of Education, Bandung Institute of Technology and research institutions in Indonesia, to encourage concrete cooperation with Osaka University. He also hopes that various stakeholders in Indonesia and Osaka University can hold a virtual meeting immediately to discuss the scope of cooperation between Indonesia and Japan.
Meanwhile, President of Osaka University, Shojiro Nishio explained that his side welcomes the cooperation and partnership between Indonesia and Japan. He also hopes for closer cooperation with institutions in Indonesia, both government, private sectors, and academics.
To improve trade relations between Indonesia and Canada, the Indonesian Consulate General in Toronto always approaches various stakeholders. On June 15, the Indonesian Consulate General in Toronto paid a visit to one of the seafood importers, AIP Seafood Company Canada, in Toronto. Purchasing Manager of AIP Seafood Company Canada, Collin Wong stated that his side is interested in importing various frozen food products from Indonesia. However, he has encountered various obstacles, such as lack of information and difficulty in finding credible partners.
The Indonesian Consul General in Toronto, Leonard F. Hutabarat is committed to helping resolve these obstacles. The Indonesian Consulate General will also facilitate AIP Seafood Company meetings with a number of Indonesian companies, including frozen shrimp producers.
AIP Seafood Company is also eager to establish long-term and mutually beneficial trade relations with Indonesian partners, including Waisai Sagara Inc. whose representatives were present at the meeting. They are interested in crabmeat products with the brand "Aruna" which have been marketed in Canada. Waisai Sagara Inc. is an Indonesian investment company based in Toronto which is an importer of crab meat products from Sidoarjo, East Java.
The Indonesian Consul General also explained that at the government to government level, Indonesia and Canada plan to establish more comprehensive economic cooperation through the Indonesia - Canada Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement -CEPA. The Indonesia-Canada CEPA is believed to provide many conveniences for business people, particularly through ease of entry fees, mobility of personnel or professional services as well as ease of investment in Indonesia.
Aviation analytics firm, Cirium announced the 10 most punctual airlines in Asia Pacific in May 2021. According to Cirium's official statement, Thursday (10/6/2021), the results were divided into two categories, namely mainline and network. Mainline is a flight system operated by major airlines and does not include airline partners. Meanwhile, Network is a flight system operated by major airlines, including flights marketed by airlines but operated by separate airline partners. Garuda Indonesia, Indonesia's national airline, won awards in both categories. Previously, various international best awards have been achieved by Garuda, including the world's best cabin crew for five consecutive years and Top 10 of The World's Best Airline 2018.
At the Asia Pacific level, Cirium placed Garuda in 4th position. In the Mainline category, the airline Japan Airlines (JAL) was ranked first with the percentage of on-time arrivals of 95.19 percent. The second place is All Nippon Airways (ANA). Meanwhile, the airline from New Zealand, Air New Zealand, is in third place with a percentage of 89.59 percent. The airline also serves the most total flights on the list, reaching 12,570 flights. Furthermore, the airline Garuda Indonesia became the only representative of Indonesia in the top 10 list.
The percentage of Garuda Indonesia's on-time arrival is 87.98 percent. The total flights are 3,916 flights. The total flights are 3,916 flights. The average delay time for Garuda Indonesia is the same as for Air New Zealand, which is 28 minutes. When compared to the mainline category, the changes in the Network category are not too much. In the Network category, ANA took the top spot. Meanwhile, JAL dropped to second place with a percentage of 93.90 percent and an average delay time of 29 minutes. Interestingly, Garuda Indonesia remained in fourth position with a percentage of on time arrivals of 87.98 percent. The average delay time is also the same, which is 28 minutes. For more than a decade, Cirium has regularly issued reports on the punctuality of airlines and airports. However, the report was temporarily suspended at the beginning of 2020 in early 2020 due to the Covid-19 pandemic which also paralyzed the aviation sector.
The Austrian Government and the Central Java Provincial Government are exploring cooperation in the field of education and increasing Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs). The cooperation was discussed in a meeting between Austrian Ambassador to Indonesia, Johannes Peterlik and Governor of Central Java, Ganjar Pranowo in Semarang, Monday (14/6).
The meeting also discussed the potential for other collaborations in the field of art and exchange of artists which are expected to be realized soon.
Ambassador Johannes Peterlik explained that many Austrian companies are involved in vocational school training and they offer it to the Central Java provincial government. In addition to discussing the potential for cooperation, Ambassador Johannes also shared discussion with Governor Ganjar regarding the handling of COVID-19. He said Austria as a member of the European Union supports Indonesia which is a part of the COVAX initiative. European Union countries have recently increased the number of vaccines in the COVAX initiative to help Indonesia fight this deadly virus.
Meanwhile, Governor Ganjar Pranowo thanked the Austrian Ambassador for visiting. Governor Ganjar Pranowo also said he was happy; there were several sectors of cooperation that have been established, namely education and increasing MSMEs. According to the governor, this cooperation can bring about benefits in improving the economy.
Governor Ganjar Pranowo also hopes that cooperation in the field of vocational schools will soon be realized. He remarked that vocational schools are indeed being improved in Central Java, following the development of the industrial sector and fulfilling the skills and expertise of the workforce in Central Java. He added that in the near future, the Central Java provincial government could send some teachers to Austria to learn about vocational schools there or invite Austrian teachers to Central Java to share their knowledge with teachers in Central Java.
The Ministry of Tourism and Creative Economy will hold international conference activities at the Five Super Priority Destinations (DSP). One of them will be held at Borobudur Temple on June 24 and 25. According to the Deputy for Tourism Products and Event Organizers of the Ministry of Tourism and Creative Economy, Rizki Handayani Musatafa, this conference aims to introduce Borobudur Temple as a source of knowledge that contains values for all human beings.
“So if we look at it, actually, there are things that the Borobudur temple is a source of knowledge that has not been explored much. We will raise these values so that people see the Borobudur temple not only in its physical form but also the existing values of Buddhists. All of these may apply to all human beings.”
Rizki added that this event can also make tourists fell confident. This is important to revive the activities of meetings, incentives, conventions, and exhibitions or MICE, especially in the five Super-priority destinations. The theme of this conference is "Sound of Borobudur-Music Over Nations: Exploring Traces of Brotherhood Across Nations Through Music." Through the representation of musical instruments on the temple reliefs, Borobudur temple will be introduced more deeply to the world. According to Prof. Melani Budianta, Ph.D from the Faculty of Cultural Sciences, University of Indonesia, Borobudur is the oldest source of artifactual data that mostly describes diverse musical orchestrations. There are 44 panels in Borobudur Temple that show musical aspects. Then, there are 226 reliefs of aero-phones, chordophones, idiophones, membra-phones musical instruments and 45 ensemble reliefs. Purwa Caraka, an Indonesian artist stated that if these musical instruments are played simultaneously, they automatically foster a sense of tolerance between tribes, even between religions. Thereby, Borobudur is a masterpiece of the civilization of Indonesia.
This international conference will be filled by musicians from Indonesia and 10 countries in Asia. These musicians will collaborate to sound the musical instruments found on the reliefs of the Borobudur temple. Then, there are seminars with experts to explore collaborations together, mini exhibitions from 10 Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs) in the Borobudur area to showcase and offer uniqueness, distinctiveness, and local superior products. This conference activity will be carried out in a hybrid manner. More participants are directed to go online and participants who attend follow strict health protocols, and are held following the CHSE MICE Guidelines, issued by the Ministry of Tourism and Creative Economy. The 100 offline participants consist of: central and local government elements, academics, domestic and foreign musicians, and tourism practitioners. Deputy for Tourism Products and Event Organizers of the Ministry of Tourism and Creative Economy, Rizki Handayani Musatafa further explained that the International Conference at Borobudur Super Priority Destination is the beginning for the implementation of International Conferences at other DSPs. Furthermore, it will be held in Toba, Likupang, Labuan Bajo, and Mandalika which will raise the theme with the peculiarities of each Super Priority Destination.
“Later in Toba, we will make it with a different theme. Toba, we will raise the theme of Geopark, because Toba has become a UNESCO Global Geopark. Then, there is Mandalika; there is Labuhan Bajo and there is Likupang, North Sulawesi. So, we will pick this up later according to the theme or then the uniqueness of the place, so that the branding can be stronger later.”
Indonesian food and beverage products are getting easier to be found in Chicago and its surroundings after a store, WaRoeNG opened its service in Schaumburg City, West Chicago on Saturday (12/6). The Indonesian Consulate General in Chicago in its written statement in Jakarta on Sunday (13/60 stated that the presence of an Indonesian shop for the first time has become a bidder of longing for the Indonesian diaspora in Chicago and its surroundings. The store opening event was held simply but lively and it was marked by ribbon cutting by Mayor of Schaumburg, Tom Dailly, Senator Michelle Mussman, Indonesian Consul General in Chicago, Meri Binsar Simorangkir, Membership Director of the Schaumburg Business Association Matt East, President of the Indonesian Diaspora Network, Martino Tangkar, and three owners of WaRoeNG shop namely Tasya Hardono, John Avila, and Windy Priliantining.
The owner of the WaRoeNG shop, Tasya Hardono explained that apart from being a bidder medicine of longing for the Indonesian diaspora, his shop is also a bridge to bring the US and Indonesian people to people contacts more closely. Schaumburg, which is inhabited by various residents, is a good place to introduce Indonesian products. Tasya, who is also the owner of the Indonesian restaurant 'Minahasa' in downtown of Chicago said that by inviting the mayor, senator, and business associations, his side wants to introduce them to the quality of Indonesian products and deserve being presented to the local community. Mayor Tom Dailly congratulated the opening of the WaRoeNG. He said the existence of the shop will be a special attraction for the Indonesian community and local residents, so that the store has a good opportunity to grow continuously.
Meanwhile, Indonesian Consul General in Chicago, Meri Binsar Simorangkir expressed his appreciation and pride for the opening of the Indonesian store. The existence of the store is expected to encourage the export of Indonesian food and beverage products to the Midwest region, in line with the Indonesian government's mission to increase exports of Indonesian products which is being intensified currently by the Indonesian Consulate General in Chicago.