Indonesia, Britain and Australia, along with the International Air Transportation Association discussed efforts to increase air cargo security at a workshop in Tarakan, North Kalimantan province.

The workshop is expected to provide positive inputs to improve airborne cargo and the postal security system in Indonesia, Director General of Air Transportation of the Indonesian Transportation Ministry, Polana B Pramest, said in a written statement released on Tuesday.

"In addition to strengthening the regulation of airborne cargo transport, the workshop is also expected to enhance cooperation between Indonesia and other countries in the aviation industry and enable Indonesia to forge cooperation with other countries in the aviation industry and keep abreast of the development of aviation technology, particularly in improving the air cargo security system," she said.

The five-day workshop which opened in Jakarta on Monday will discuss standards and recommended practices related to the responsibility for air cargo and postal security against unlawful acts, in accordance with the International Civil Aviation Organization, Annex 17 concerning Flight Safety and Aviation Security Manuals (Doc 8973) in general.

Director of Flight Security, Dadun Kohar, opened the workshop, which was also attended by Aviation Security Liaison Officer of the British Embassy, Elizabeth Mehmood, and First Secretary for Transport, Risk and International Matters of the Australian Embassy, David Scott.

During the workshop, the participants will discuss the risks and threats of cargo transport and responsibility for cargo and postal transport security against unlawful acts based on Annex 17 and Doc 8973. (ANTARA)

Governor of Jakarta Anies Baswedan received a visit from Palestinian Ambassador to Indonesia Zuhair Al Shun and his delegation at the City Hall, in Jakarta, on Monday.

The visit was aimed at exploring cooperation in the economic field between Palestine and the capital city of Indonesia.

"I hope that the relations between Indonesia and Palestine would become closer through trade ties between the two countries. As we have already established people-to-people ties and diplomatic relations, business-to-business ties remain to be intensified," Baswedan remarked, adding that Palestine holds a special place in the hearts of Indonesian people.

By forging mutual cooperation in business, Palestine will have an opportunity to introduce its products -- dates, olive oil, and baklava -- to Jakarta's residents.

The governor invited Palestine to participate in a people's bazaar to be organized along Sudirman-MH Thamrin Boulevards, Jakarta, in September this year.

The governor vowed to provide facilities, such as information and business permits, required by Palestinian businessmen to market their products. (ANTARA)

Minister of Research and Higher Education Mohamad Nasir has urged all higher education institutions, particularly state universities, to produce competent undergraduates and diploma graduates in line with the industry demands.

"This is an effort to improve the quality of human resources. Hence, universities can no longer afford to produce graduates that are unable to meet the requirements of the industry," he remarked after attending the Plenary Meeting of the Indonesian Economic Scholars Association (ISEI) at Stikubank University, Semarang, on Monday.

Minister Nasir affirmed that massive endeavors will be made to boost the quality of college graduates to obtain optimal results in terms of the human resources.

The minister highlighted the need for students to secure competency certification to respond to challenges arising from digital transformation that have changed the structure of the labor market.

Furthermore, the policy of necessitating undergraduates and diploma graduates to obtain a competency certificate aims to ensure that those from universities are employable.

"Hence, scholars and diploma holders must obtain competency certificates, and we will implement this on a massive scale," he stated.

The minister confirmed that his party will revitalize higher education through vocational education, so that after graduation, the students have not only obtained a diploma but also a certificate of competence in their respective fields, especially in the areas of science and technology.

"In addition, college graduates must be able to compete and boost economic growth of the surrounding community," he stated. (ANTARA)

The government has prepared a national action plan spread over the next few years to reclaim regions exposed to the toxic elements of mercury (Hg), the Environment and Forestry Ministry said. "It has become a national priority and we have the national action plan," the Director General of Waste and Toxic Waste Management of the ministry, Rosa Vivien Ratnawati said in Jakarta Monday.

It would not be an easy task to reclaim ex-mining sites that have been contaminated with mercury but it is necessary to prevent the negative impact on the society, she admitted.

Illegal public mines must be closed based on the law No. 32/2009 on the protection and management of the environment, she said.

In the near future, the government will restore the condition of Mount Botak in Buru Island, Maluku Province that had been damaged by illegal gold mines.

"Usually it will take one to two years for the recovery," she said and added that the ministry has conducted an evaluation on the levels of contamination and methods that could be used to reclaim the area.

Sumatra, Kalimantan and West Nusa Tenggara are among regions in the country that were heavily contaminated by mercury and need recovery action.

Two districts in West Nusa Tenggara are so badly contaminated with mercury that it has forced the authority to ban people from consuming meat produced by these two regions.

Regions with public small-scale mines that did not use mercury will get gold processing facilities between Rp1.2 billion and Rp1.5 billion, Ratnawati said. (ANTARA)