VOI - Voice of Indonesia | RRI - Radio Republik Indonesia

Indonesian Ambassador to South Africa, Salman Al Farisi was elected as Secretary General of the Indian Ocean Rim Association (IORA) for the period 2022–2024. This was determined at the 21st IORA Ministerial Meeting in Dhaka, Bangladesh more recently.

IORA is the pioneer and the only regional organization with coverage throughout the Indian Ocean region. The main priority within the IORA framework is to strengthen economic, maritime, and sustainable development cooperation in the Indian Ocean Region. Currently, IORA has 23 member countries, and nine dialogue partners.

Indonesian Minister of Foreign Affairs, Retno Marsudi said that the election of a representative from Indonesia as Secretary General of the IORA was a matter of great pride. She also expressed her appreciation for the process of selecting the Secretary General, which was carried out in a balanced, transparent and inclusive manner. According to Minister Retno, this is important to strengthen IORA's institutional capacity. She also emphasized that in a present challenging situation, IORA members have no choice but unite and collaborate to overcome the Covid-19 pandemic together and encourage economic recovery. Therefore, Minister Retno Marsudi called on the member countries to work together, recover together and recover stronger.

The election of an Indonesian representative to occupy the highest strategic position in IORA is the first time since the organization's formation in 1997. This is inseparable from the diplomatic efforts that have been carried out so far.

Indonesia has always played an active role in the IORA. In 2017, IORA held the first summit in Indonesia and commemorated the 20th anniversary of IORA's founding.

So, what are the benefits that can be obtained by Indonesia with a position as Secretary General in the Association of Indian Ocean Rim Countries (IORA)?

The position as Secretary General of IORA is expected to contribute to the development of Indonesia’s marine-based economy. At the same time, it also raises the profile of Indonesia's leadership in the international arena.

In addition, because the Indonesian economy is one of the best among other IORA members, there is a possibility that member countries can become markets for Indonesian commodities both finished and semi-finished products.

The people of Central Sulawesi know 3 traditional houses as their pride. One of them is the Tambi Traditional House of the Lore Tribe and Kaili Tribe. It is classified as a rectangular house on stilts whose roof is also useful as a wall. The house pedestal is made of stacked blocks, while the foundation is made of natural stone. It is a house on stilts with short pillars and no more than 1 meter high. There are 9 support poles and they are attached to each other using wooden pegs. Usually, the poles are made of Bonati wood, a type of forest wood that has a strong texture and is not easily weathered. The stairs to enter are made of round logs. The number of household steps is different and meaningful. The odd number steps indicate the house of the traditional head. Meanwhile, the even number of stairs is a resident’s house.

The Tambi Traditional House has no rooms and its occupants usually sleep in the living room using a wooden bed. In the middle of the main room, there is a kitchen equipped with a stove for cooking. This house has no partitions in the room. So, the local people carry out all activities in one room. This indicates that in the past, the local people might look at each other; the important thing was to be comfortable in the rainy season and protected from the hot sun. The Tambi Traditional House is used as a residence. It has additional buildings, namely Buho or Gambiri which have their functions. For example, Bohu is a building that has 2 floors and has rooms like the main house. The first floor is used to receive guests, while the second one is used for storing rice. While Pointua is used as a place to pound rice. Recently, the Tambi Traditional House has begun to make ornaments on the door as decoration. Most of the motifs are inspired by the environment, such as animals or plants.

Building a Tambing Traditional House should not be careless. There is a main requirement that must be done when building. The position of the house must face south and north. So, it doesn’t turn its back to the sun at sunrise and sunset. Another attraction, according to Rifai Mardin, a lecturer in architectural engineering from Tadulako University, is that this traditional house with stilt architecture is earthquake resistant. In addition, it is also resistant to floods and tsunamis. Of course, the height is not as high as the body of the building or above 2 meters from the ground floor of the house. It will also be able to survive if the water waves don’t carry huge water. He also believes that ancient people had sufficient knowledge about the conditions in which they lived. Moreover, people used to live with earthquakes in the past; this can be seen from the local culture, especially in the design of buildings.

Indonesian Minister of Foreign Affairs, Retno Marsudi appreciated the health cooperation amid the Covid-19 pandemic between Indonesia and New Zealand. Until now, New Zealand has provided vaccines, ventilators, rapid test for Indonesia and support for Eijkman Institute. That was stated by Minister Retno Marsudi after a meeting with her New Zealand counterpart, Nanaia Mahuta at Indonesian Foreign Affairs Ministry office in Jakarta, Monday (15/11). Then, Minister Retno Marsudi said that health issues will be a priority of the Indonesian presidency in the G20. Indonesia shared a similar position on the importance of equal vaccine access for all countries.

In the meeting, both ministers discussed cooperation on post-pandemic economic recovery acceleration. Minister Retno Marsudi affirmed that trade and investment are always the key in an economy. In September, the bilateral trade trend rose by 37 percent year on year up to US$1.25 billion. Hard work is still needed to achieve US$ 2.8 billion in 2024.

Minister Retno further affirmed the importance of a more balanced bilateral trade. Therefore, she asked New Zealand to open market access for Indonesian tropical fruits and to strengthen investment and capacity building programs for agriculture and farming in Indonesia.

She also hoped that trade cooperation, such as ASEAN-Australia-New Zealand Free Trade Agreement and RCEP can be used to boost the two countries' trade and investment. Minister Retno Marsudi added that New Zealand can be a partner in energy transition. One of the cooporations that can be developed is geothermal. A partnership in this energy sector has been shown among many by Flores Geothermal Island in West Nusa Tenggara and pipeline development in Maluku in the framework of New Zealand-Maluku Access to Renewable Energy Support (NZMATES).

The Indonesian Embassy in Canberra received the visit of Education and Research Attaché of the Australian Embassy in Jakarta, Han Xiao Zhang to discuss the potential for increased cooperation in the education sector and to introduce a program of Merdeka Belajar-Kampus Merdeka which means Independent Learning-Independent Campus.

Deputy Ambassador of the Indonesian Embassy in Canberra, Tuesday (16/11), Mohammad Syarif Alatas said that the relationship of Indonesia and Australia in the education sector has been well established. He hopes that the continuation of cooperation in the field of education will bring about more exchanges of knowledge and technology for the progress of both countries.

According to Syarif, currently, there are around 13.000 Indonesian students studying in Australia. However, 3.950 of them are still unable to enter the country due to the closure of Australia's borders amid the Covid-19 pandemic. He also expressed his hope that in the future, Australia could establish vocational schools in Indonesia to improve the quality of skilled workers in Indonesia.

On that occasion, Han Xiao Zhang expressed his interest in cooperation in the field of education with Indonesia. He stated that his country would continue to facilitate the education sector for Indonesian students.

At the meeting, the Indonesian Cultural and Educational Attache in Canberra, Mukhamad Najib also promotes the program of Merdeka Belajar-Kampus Merdeka to the delegation of Education and Research Attache at the Australian Embassy in Jakarta.

The universities in Australia selected by the Indonesian Government as the destination for the Indonesian International Student Mobility Awards or the international mobility program for Indonesian students in 2022 are Australian National University and Melbourne University.