VOI - Voice of Indonesia | RRI - Radio Republik Indonesia

The Indonesian Embassy in Suva, Fiji, on Saturday (15/06/2024) held a fun walk as a part to celebrate the 50th anniversary of Indonesia-Fiji bilateral relations.

The Indonesian Ambassador to Fiji Dupito D. Simamora said the event through a cooperation with Fiji-Indonesia Friendship Association (FIFA) represents the long road of the two countries' mutually beneficial bilateral relations.

Dupito in a written statement quoted by Antara news in Jakarta said the fun walk aimed to unite the community to celebrate the two nations' great journey and a promise to keep the relationship and cooperation in the future.

Besides Dupito, the event was jointly opened by the Acting President of Fiji Salesi Temo and the Chairman of FIFA and former Ambassador of Fiji to Indonesia Tui Cavuilati.

The participants began the fun walk at 7 am local time from Albert Park Lower Hall in Suva, going through Queen Elizabeth Drive to Suzuki Park, before finishing back at Albert Park, where the participants could enjoy snacks.

The event was joined by more than 300 people from diplomatic corps, Fiji government officials, alumni of Indonesian Scholarship to Fiji, local students, and Indonesian citizens community in Fiji.

Dupito also highlighted the Queen Victoria School students, who received rehabilitation assistance from the Indonesian Government after being damaged by Cyclone Winston in 2016, as proof of the close bilateral relations and long-lasting mutual cooperation between Indonesia and Fiji.

Apart from the fun walk, the Indonesian Embassy in Suva also held some other events to commemorate half a century of relations between Indonesia and Fiji.

The agenda includes the handing over of medical equipment grants to empower Fiji's rural communities, holding seminars on the theme of Indonesia-Fiji cooperation with Fiji National University, as well as the launch of the Fiji-Indonesia Friendship Association.

The Indonesian government through the Ministry of Trade and the Indonesian Embassy in Cairo inaugurated the 11th outlet for Indonesian vehicle tires and rims belonging to the Ashrafco company in the Madinaty, New Cairo, Egypt district last Sunday (9/6).

Indonesian Ambassador to Egypt, Lutfi Rauf, said on Wednesday (13/6/2024) that the inauguration of Ashrafco's 11th outlet is expected to boost Indonesian exports to the Egyptian market, especially tire and vehicle rim products. He hopes to continue working with Ashrafco to market superior Indonesian products in Egypt.

Indonesian Trade Attaché in Cairo, M. Syahran Bhakti, who was present on behalf of Ambassador Lutfi, said the Madinaty district, which is the location of the 11th outlet, is a strategic place and is only 25 kilometers from the new administrative capital of Egypt.

Syahran Bhakti said Ashrafco is a company from Egypt which is the sole agent for three large Indonesian companies, namely PT Elang Perdana Tire Industry with vehicle tire products, as well as PT Bangun Sarana Alloy and PT Prima Alloy Universal with vehicle rim products.

He also appreciated Egyptian importer Ashrafco for the cooperation, loyalty, and dedication that has been built with the Indonesian company since starting the vehicle tire and rim business in 1986.

Ashrafco company owners, Khaled Hammad and Ashraf Hammad Shehata, were also present at the inauguration. Khaled Hammad said Ashrafco will continue to provide special services for customers.

According to him, Indonesian tire and rim products distributed by Ashrafco will continue to target the upper middle class. He claimed that he would continue to prioritize special services, such as door-to-door services and online services to attract customers.

Khaled Hammad also expressed his appreciation for the assistance and facilities provided by the Cairo Trade Attaché, so that he could establish business relationships with Indonesian tire and rim companies.

This year, Ashrafco imported Indonesian tires and rims worth more than 5 million US dollars. Khaled Hammad is optimistic Indonesian tires and rims can compete and are increasingly in demand in the Egyptian market.

On the sidelines of the inauguration of the outlet, Syahran Bhakti also invited Egyptian vehicle tire, rim, and automotive business players to visit the 39th Indonesian Trade Exhibition that will take place on 9-12 October 2024 at the Indonesia Convention Exhibition Bumi Serpong Damai City, Tangerang, themed, “Build Strong Connection with The Best of Indonesia.”

May 21, Bilebante Green tourism village, Central Lombok, West Nusa Tenggara, became the main location for World Book Day 2024. The event was centered at Pasar Pancingan by holding a book review event. Bilebante Green tourism village is one of the tourism destinations in Central Lombok. It presents its natural beauty typical of the countryside. The village is 15.6 kilometers from the city center, which can be reached in about 26 minutes by driving.

When you arrive in Bilebante village, it's time for you to tour the village by bicycle or ATV. You can feel the cool atmosphere of the village while pedaling from residential areas, river banks, rice fields, vegetable and fruit gardens, Lime Bridge and the oldest temple in Central Lombok, the Lingkar Kelud Temple. If you are lucky, you can also watch farmers planting rice and the process of making a local specialty hat called “Kekere”. The fertile soil of Bilebante Village is overgrown with a variety of herbal plants that are very good for health. You can witness the planting and breeding of herbal gardens by the village youth. You will be guided to learn about the health of these herbs. Seaweed farming is usually done on the beach, but this village is unique because there is seaweed cultivation in the rice fields of Bilebante village. The seaweed harvest is used as raw material for making serabi (rice flour pancake with coconut milk). You must taste the seaweed serabi of Bilebante village.

For those of you who like fishing, you can go to the Pancingan Market. There you can do fishing activities in the pond. Uniquely, the results of the fishing can be directly processed into fish-based dishes.  For those who like cooking, you can join cooking class tour package. You can try making herbal medicine, moringa leaf vegetables and merangkat chicken, and pelecing in the style of Bilebante tourist city. The atmosphere of the cooking class is quite pleasant surrounded by plantations around the Pancingan Market.

The World Water Forum Bali event closed last May 24. Indonesia as the host of the 10th World Water Forum handed over the milestone of organizing the 11th World Water Forum to Saudi Arabia. At the closing of WWF Bali, Youth Sanitation Concern Coordinator Iffah Rachmi received the Kyoto World Water Grand Prize 2024 award organized by the Japan Water Forum in collaboration with Kyoto City and the World Water Council.

Iffah founded Youth Sanitation Concern (YSC) in Lampung since 2018, which actively promotes sanitation issues, handwashing with soap, and maintenance of sanitation facilities. YSC presents sanitation in a creative way to attract the attention of the community, especially the younger generation. When receiving the award, Iffah Rachmi said that this initiative is the first step for YSC to continue working so that water sanitation becomes mainstream in people's lives.

The Kyoto World Water Grand Prize recognizes grassroots organizations that make significant contributions to solving water problems in developing countries. The organization awards a prize of 2 million Yen. According to Iffah Rachmi, Coordinator of Youth Sanitation Concern, this award is an honor and proof that the younger generation can contribute to changing habits in society. According to Rachmi, we must trust and give more confidence to the younger generation.