VOI - Voice of Indonesia | RRI - Radio Republik Indonesia

Palm oil is Indonesia's superior product. The Central Bureau of Statistics -PBS noted that it was similar to 2016 that in 2017, Indonesia’s export of palm oil and its derivative products was still the largest foreign exchange contributor to Indonesia. Prof. Bustanul Arifin from the Faculty of Agriculture, University of Lampung predicts that up to 10 years, the volume and export value of palm oil and its derivative products will continue to increase. However, he reminds business-people and government actors that sustainability matter will continue to be an obstacle to palm oil export.

During the 40th Annual Summit of ASEAN-EU Partnership Cooperation in Manila, the Philippines on 14 November 2017, President Joko Widodo asserted before the participants of the summit that palm oil is very close to alleviating poverty in Indonesia, narrowing the gap, and building an inclusive economy..

Otherwise, the European Parliament supported the ban on the use of palm oil as environmentally friendly fuel by 2021. In fact, Europe is one of the main export destinations of Indonesian palm oil. Minister of Trade, Enggartiasto Lukita and Minister of Foreign Affairs, Retno Marsudi said that this is a "black campaign" in Europe towards Indonesian palm oil products. The EU policy is considered discriminatory

President Joko Widodo requested that the discrimination of the EU against palm oil be stopped. A number of attitudes and policies that are considered to harm economic interests and damage the image of palm oil producing countries must also be eliminated.

Meanwhile, economic observer from the Institute for Development of Economics and Finance (Indef), Bhima Yudhistira believes that Indonesia is still dependent on traditional markets which reach about 70% of the total export destination countries. He views that in 2018, Indonesia should find out alternative markets, such as Pakistan, South Africa and North Africa which are considered very potential.

Since 2011, Indonesia has established a policy mandating a sustainable palm oil governance and certification system so-called ‘Indonesian Sustainable Palm Oil’ (ISPO). This policy is intended to improve the competitiveness of Indonesian palm oil in the global market, with more attention to environmental issues, such as greenhouse gas emissions and so on. To build the image of the palm oil products that has ISPO around the world, especially in export destination countries, Indonesian diplomats overseas must play a major role. This policy is known as palm oil diplomacy.

To support the government's efforts to carry out palm oil diplomacy, the Policy and Development Agency (BPPK) at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs cooperates with Pertamina University to conduct an applicative study. The study of International Relations of Pertamina University is focused on the energy sector in Indonesia. On February 1, 2018, a memorandum of understanding was signed between the two institutions.

The BPPK of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs considers Pertamina University to be a cooperation partner in producing studies and recommendations related to Indonesia's foreign policy, including strategic commodity sectors such as palm oil.

At the session of National Committee for Sharia Finance President Joko Widodo (Jokowi) has remarked that the potential of Islamic finance development in Indonesia is very great, considering the country has largest Muslim population in the world.

"Therefore, we have to be serious to work on this potential. I see that this potential shows an improvement," President Jokowi said in a meeting held at the Presidential Office here on Monday.

According to the President, sharia banking assets continue to increase in 2017 amounted to Rp435 trillion (about US$32.2 billion), or about 5.8 percent of the total assets of Indonesian banks.

In addition, the sharia capital market in Indonesia also continues to improve with market share of sukuk (the Islamic financial certificate) reached 19 percent of all sukuk which are issued by various countries.

The government also noted that non-bank Islamic finance industry assets have doubled since 2013.

"We also have enormous potential in the collection of religious social funds such as pilgrims, zakat funds, waqf funds, and alms," the President said.

He explained that the potential of sharia industry and trade that can be immediately developed among others Muslim fashion industry, halal food industry, pharmaceutical industry and tourism industry.

"We have the highest halal food consumption level in the world," Jokowi said, adding that the country is the world`s fifth largest market for Muslim clothing, halal medicine and cosmetics.

Halal refers to what is permissible or lawful in Islamic law. It is frequently applied to permissible food and drinks.

The Head of State urged all people to become the driving force of sharia economy in the country and also abroad. (antaranews)

Paddy or rice is still the main staple food source of most Indonesian people. The dependency of Indonesian people on rice is the highest in the world that is equal to 139.5 kg / year. To ensure the availability of food, the stakeholders make various efforts. The government, in this case the Ministry of Agriculture, has launched a diversification of food to be run in 2018. This program is one of the efforts to reduce dependency on rice and flour. However, the replacement of rice and flour should be sourced from local commodities which are nutritious and safe for consumption.

To support food diversification program and to reduce rice consumption, lecturer of Bogor Agricultural Institute (IPB) West Java, utilized lindur (Bruguiera gymnorrhiza) as an analog-making-material rice by combining it with sago and chitosan. Analog rice is rice that is produced not by planting in rice fields, but bring produced in the factory by processing from existing food ingredients.

This innovation is done by Prof. Dr. Ir. Nurjanah, MS, lecturer as well as Professor of Aquatic Product Technology, Faculty of Fisheries and Marine Sciences (FPIK) Bogor Agricultural Institute (IPB) with two colleagues -Taufik Hidayat and Pipih Suptijah. This discovery is one of Prof. Nurjanah’s four works that was selected as four of the 109 Indonesian innovations in 2017 announced by BIC (Business Innovation Center) on 9 August 2017.

Lindur fruit used is one type of mangroves, that is commonly found in Indonesia and has the same carbohydrate with rice. According to Nurjanah, her team uses lindur fruit because this fruit is a source of carbohydrates, especially the abundant production in Indonesia. Nurjanah added that one of the efforts to avoid rice dependency of Indonesian people is to diversify food by using local carbohydrate source as food product such as analog rice.

Meanwhile, Taufik Hidayat added that this analogue rice contains many fibers and is very suitable consumed by diabetics. The team chose a combination of lindur-fruit with sago because according to him sago has important commodities that have not been utilized optimally. In addition, Prof. Nurjanah also uses chitosan as a binder and stabilizer. Chitosan is a natural polymer compound isolated from aquaculture waste such as shrimp, crab shells and others. Taufik explained that chitosan has the same properties as synthetic texture formers that can improve the appearance and texture of a product because it has a strong water and oil binding power and heat resistance. From the results of Prof. Nurjanah and two colleagues’ research, it ia found that lindur powder can be an alternative substitution of wheat because it contains a high carbohydrate that is 86.10 percent. While the best analog rice formulation is a combination of 70 percent of lindur flour, 30 percent sago flour, and chitosan 0.5 percent.

The Importance of Synergy and Cooperation between Indonesia and United Nations at the IUNCF Forum

The 3rd Plenary Meeting of Indonesia - United Nations Consultative Forum (IUNCF) was held in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (1/2). The meeting was opened by the Minister of Foreign Affairs, Retno Marsudi and co-chaired by the Director General for Multilateral Cooperation, Febrian A. Ruddyard, and United Nations Resident Coordinator for Indonesia, Anita Nirody. In her speech, the Minister expressed the importance of IUNCF as a forum to strengthen the synergy and cooperation between the United Nations and Indonesia, in particular addressing the challenges of current issues, including migration and refugee crises, the 2030 sustainable development agenda, the spread of radicalism, terrorism and extremism, climate change, global health, and UN reform.

The Minister affirmed Indonesia's commitment to cooperate with the UN as part of the solution to these global challenges. Indonesia-UN cooperation in this regard needs to be directed to adapt various UN programs to be in line with Indonesia's national development plan.

The Minister emphasized three aspects that need to be improved in the IUNCF Forum. First of all, better coordination and consultation between the UN and the central government in implementing UN programs and activities in Indonesia are needed, including UN work programs and visits to the region. Second, the UN program needs to be directed more in line with Indonesia's national development priorities and help Indonesia achieve sustainable development goals.

At the end of the meeting, the Joint Chairs underlined the importance of IUNCF sustainability to strengthen effective coordination between the United Nations and the Government of Indonesia. The Joint Chairs provide direction for the continuation of IUNCF, which includes the need for a joint review mechanism of the United Nations program in Indonesia, technical-work to explore the thematic issues of mutual interest, and the importance of UN agencies coordinating with the Indonesian government in implementing its programs and activities both at the central and regional levels.

Indonesia Ready to Continue to Help Create Peace in Mindanao. As a close friend and neighbor of the Philippines, Indonesia is ready to continue to support the peace process in Mindanao, the Philippines. This is said by Minister of Foreign Affairs, Retno Marsudi at the time of receiving Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) and UNDP delegation at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs Building in Jakarta on Monday (1/2). She said that Indonesia's support for the peace process in Mindanao had been carried out from the beginning, through involvement in the drafting of the peace agreement in 1996 and actively contributing to the International Monitoring Team.

The MILF and UNDP delegations visited Indonesia from 27 January to 2 February 2018 to learn from Indonesia's experience in the peace process in Aceh. During this visit, the delegation met with officials, community leaders and academics in Aceh and held meetings with Indonesian Islamic figures and a courtesy visit to the Vice President and Foreign Minister of Indonesia in Jakarta.

The Minister hopes this visit can provide useful feedback and new insights from Indonesia's experience in Aceh that can be implemented in the peace process in Mindanao.

One form of cooperation between Indonesia and the South Philippines is the cooperation of Islamic education for curriculum development, scholars exchange, teachers and students, and vocational education. Through this cooperation, Indonesia will provide 100 scholarships per year for Filipino-madrasah students and will organize Workshop on Islamic Education Cooperation in Jakarta, 14-15 February 2018.

AIPR information Ready to Support Peace and Reconciliation Maintenance Efforts in the Region. ASEAN’s Insitute for Peace and Reconciliation (AIPR) will be an important instrument in peacekeeping and reconciliation efforts. This was stated by the Minister of Foreign Affairs of Indonesia, Retno Marsudi, at the signing ceremony of Home Approval Agreement and Giving Privileges and Immunities to the ASEAN’s Institute for Peace and Reconciliation at Pancasila Building, Indonesia’s Foreign Affairs Ministry, Jakarta (1/2). The challenges facing by ASEAN in the process of community development, such as violent extremism and internal armed conflict must be addressed and anticipated. This is where AIPR plays its strategic role.

Minister Retno Marsudi added that the signing is the culmination of the AIPR Secretariat's operational process and invites all ASEAN Member Countries to continue to support AIPR in carrying out its mandate and function. Since its official establishment in 2012, during the 21st ASEAN Summit in Phnom Penh, Cambodia, AIPR officially had its Secretariat in October 2017, when Ambassador Rezlan Ishar Jenie was elected Executive Director of AIPR through an open recruitment process.

AIPR is an initiative of Indonesia during its chairmanship in ASEAN in 2011. This institute is intended as an ASEAN Entity specializing in research activities on peace, conflict management and reconciliation, holding capacity building activities for stakeholders as well as being a network center. In the future, AIPR is expected to offer and recommend a comprehensive solution in the field of peace and reconciliation in the ASEAN region.

Indonesia is committed to supporting the development of AIPR through the provision of AIPR Secretariat Office within the Ministry of Foreign Affairs' Education and Training Center at Jl. Sisingamangaraja No. 73 in South Jakarta. (Mar-Alika)