VOI - Voice of Indonesia | RRI - Radio Republik Indonesia

To support food production in Garut, the Government through the Ministry of PUPR builds the Copong Dam to raise and maintain the water level of the Cimanuk River so that it can be channeled to irrigation channels until the dry season.

In addition, the construction of a primary irrigation network along the 13 kilometers (km) and rehabilitating 3 km of existing primary irrigation networks.

Construction of weirs and irrigation networks in the Leuwigoong Irrigation Area will irrigate rice fields in 11 sub-districts in Garut covering an area of ​​5,313 hectares (ha). With the existence of a reliable irrigation network it can increase the Garut farmers' crop index from 176% now, to 250%. This means that you can plant rice twice and once a crop.

After the flash floods that occurred in the City and Regency of Garut in 2016, the Ministry of PUPR has normalized the Cimanuk River and the Cimanuk tributary for 5 km.

The Ministry of PUPR also set up a Cimanuk River flash flood memorial to commemorate and increase public awareness to maintain watersheds. That way the settlements around the Cimanuk River are safer from the threat of banjir bandang. (Public Communication Bureau of the Ministry of PUPR / EN)

The National Modificator Aftermarket Association (NMAA) believes that the Indonesian modification market can be as large as markets in Japan and the United States if all automotive elements are united and support each other in developing a growing vehicle industry.

"With the collaboration and support of all parties, we believe our modification industry can be as big as America and Japan," said NMAA Leader Andre Mulyadi in a statement received by national news agency Antara on Saturday.

To that end, NMAA will again hold a modified venue for the Indonesia Modification Expo (IMX) 2019 on a larger scale in September 28-29 2019 at Balai Kartini, Jakarta, following the first implementation in 2018.

With the support of the government, the aftermarket industry, brand holder agents, modifiers, and automotive lovers, IMX 2019 will bring the theme "Power of Collaboration", which was chosen to unite all elements in the automotive industry in the country.

"Modification of Indonesia should be a major part of the world car tuning industry, especially having the largest automotive market in Southeast Asia," he said.

IMX 2019 has been running a series of promotions since the beginning of 2019 by traveling to several cities, as well as participating in automotive exhibitions abroad by bringing several original Indonesian aftermarket products.

Andre explained, the aftermarket brand that joins IMX will automatically be integrated with several similar modification exhibitions in America and Japan.

IMX 2019 is also committed to bringing original aftermarket products to the country abroad. IMX will present the invited guests as well as the best curators from the three modification centers of the World, America, Japan and Australia.

Local exhibitors who have ordered platforms at IMX 2019 include KARMA Bodykit, Yoong Motor, Gear Head Monkey, Tom Airbrush, Black Retail, Speed Z, Pro 7, Autovision, Frontier, AirPride Air Suspension, and APForce.

"Some of the products launched at IMX last year, such as KARMA, Bitelblack, Yoong Motor, etc., have proven successful and even penetrated the world modification market," said Andre.

There are also world-class names including Pioneer, Mooneyes Japan, Osaka Automesse, Bendpak, Dynacorn, Edelbrock, Socal Speed Shop, Alpine, and Air Lift Suspension.

IMX 2019 works with the Indonesian Ministry of Industry in encouraging the automotive industry, especially modifications to be more developed so as to open opportunities for domestic automotive entrepreneurs. (ant)

The Jakarta Fair 2019 held at the Jakarta International Expo in Kemayoran, Central Java, from May 22 to June 30 is the venue to showcase prime products from various regions in Indonesia.

Various unique local products of small and medium enterprises can be found in Hall B3-C3. To attract visitors, the booths are decorated by displaying the characteristics of each province.

One of the unique booths which attract a lot of visitors was seen on the booth of the Yogyakarta special region administration. Various products of small and medium enterprises (SME) such as batik, wood crafts, fashion, food, and bags are exhibited.

"These exhibits are excellent products from Yogyakarta," said an usher of the Yogyakarta stand, Jemi Hendri Sugito, Sunday.

He said the products on display had been curated in advance by the local Trade and Industry Service. These products must meet quality permit standards both in terms of hygiene and quality.

"Craftsmen are registered by the industrial service. This is one of the efforts of the provincial government to increase selling power and promotion," he said.

According to him, this year is the 14th year Yogyakarta joining the Jakarta Fair event. But different from the previous years, the number of craftsmen who want to participate in exhibiting their products is increasing this year.

In line with Jemi, one of the keepers of the product booth owned by the East Java provincial administration, Risma Hidayat, said that this annual event was very useful for the promotion of prime products guided by the local industry and trade offices.

According to her, this exhibition is also a medium to attract investors to invest in business development.

"Hopefully this year there will be investors who want to invest their capital," she said.

In addition to the booths from East Java and Yogyakarta, a number of regions also exhibited their unique crafts at the 2019 Jakarta Fair, such as Aceh, Palembang, Cilacap, Banten, and Jakarta.

The annual exhibition which has been going on since 1968 also exhibits other kinds of products such as automotive products, technology, sports equipment, fashion, furniture, handicrafts, and cosmetics. (ant)

Indonesian Transportation Minister Budi Karya Sumadi said Boeing 737 MAX 8s remain banned so that these aircraft could not yet be operated for carrying passengers during the Idul Fitri holiday season.

"Boeing 737 MAX 8s are not allowed to fly, even though there will be the peak of commercial flights ahead of and after the Idul Fitri holiday season," he told journalists in Tangerang, Banten Province, on Sunday.

The airline companies had been instructed not to operate their Boeing 737 MAX 8s before, during, and after Idul Fitri, the Muslim festivity that marks the end of the fasting month of Ramadhan, he revealed.

The ban remains valid until a final investigation into this aircraft has been completed, he said, adding that the ban was issued for safety reasons.

Indonesia had officially sought further advice from the US Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) on thorough inspections of Boeing 737 MAX 8s following an Ethiopian Airlines plane crash on March 10, 2019, killing all 157 on board.

"We had sent a letter on March 12, seeking the FAA's advice because Indonesia is one of the countries having many Boeing 737 MAX-8s," the Transportation Ministry's Air Transportation Director Genera, Polana B. Pramesti, stated in March.

The FAA's immediate reply was increasingly important for Indonesia, and it will serve as a reference for conducting checks of the Boeing 737 MAX 8s since a similar aircraft operated by Indonesia's Lion Air had also crashed in October 2018, she pointed out.

A day after a Boeing 737 MAX 8 plane of Ethiopian Airlines crashed six minutes after takeoff during its flight from Addis Ababa to Nairobi on Sunday (March 10), the Indonesian Transportation Ministry had temporarily grounded all Boeing 737 MAX 8s in the country.

Pramesti noted that as the operating mode of the US Transportation Department, the FAA's reply to Indonesia's letter will be highly valuable in order to ensure continued maintenance of passenger safety and security. (ant)