VOI - Voice of Indonesia | RRI - Radio Republik Indonesia

At least 57 domestic and foreign tour package buyers who attended the 6th Bali and Beyond Travel Fair (BBTF) in Nusa Dua, Bali, on June 25-29, 2019 explored tourist sites in Indonesia's province of Maluku.

The head of the Maluku Tourism Office, Habiba Saimima, said in Maluku's provincial capital of Ambon, on Tuesday that 57 tour package buyers consisted of 12 people from China, 10 from India and Australia each, eight from the Netherlands, five from Malaysia, three from Singapore, two from France, and seven from Indonesia.

"The transaction that will be realized is predicted to reach Rp53 billion," she said.

However, according to Habiba, the buyers of tour packages require a decrease in the price of airline tickets.

"Thankfully the government has facilitated the reduction in airplane tickets which indeed affects arrivals of tourists, especially foreigners to Maluku," she said.

She pointed out that Maluku's involvement in the 6th BBTF was for the first time to promote Maluku's tourism to foreign markets.

Maluku at the event promoted a leading destination of North Seram, Central Maluku District which was part of the Sawai Bay marine conservation area and Manusela national park.

The provincial administration also promoted the Banda destination in Central Maluku District, which includes the marine conservation area of Ai and Run islands, and the Kei Islands that includes the Kei sea area in Southeast Maluku District.

"So the three destinations are reflected in the Maluku tourism booth wall representing North Seram, diving hammer shark in Banda and Ngurtavur beach on the Kei Islands," Habiba said.

She said this Maluku tourism promotion was part of Governor Murad Ismail's work and Deputy Governor Barnabas Orno's program.

"We also take part in the Nusantara Tourism and Culture Festival at the JCC (Jakarta Convention Center), Jakarta on June 27-30, 2019 by promoting the 2019 tourism event calendar of Maluku specialty handicrafts, tuna skipjack, eucalyptus oil, woven fabrics and Banda tour packages, Ora beach, Kei tourism and Ambon," Habiba said.

On the promotion abroad, she explained, Maluku attended diving resort travel in Guangzhou, China on June 27 - July 1, 2019, where visitors were interested in visiting Banda.

"I received a report that at this international event until June 28, 2019 there was a transaction of Rp106.80 million," Habiba noted. (ANTARA)

The six figures are Roti Beau founder, International Pastry Competition Award Winner, Talita Setyadi; Indonesian Public Affairs Manager Airbus, Mexind Suko Utomo;  Marine Geoscience Researcher of the Indonesian Institute of Sciences (LIPI), Nugroho Dwi Hananto; Former Head of Surabaya House of Sampoerna Irmina Silas; Director of Development of the Indonesia Stock Exchange Hasan Fawzi, and Deputy Head of the Coordinating Ministry for Maritime Affairs Safri Burhanuddin.

The awards were bestowed by France Ambassador to Indonesia and Timor Leste Jean-Charles Berthonnet at a reception in Jakarta on Sunday (June 30).

"The Alumni Trophy award is bestowed as a mark of appreciation on figures, who contribute in collaboration between Indonesia and France and bring together the France alumni from any major," Ambassador Berthonnet remarked in a statement on Monday.

Berthonnet noted that over a thousand Indonesian alumni had registered on the official website of the France alumni.

The students, either from Indonesia or other countries, who studied in France could meet again and get information on career opportunities in companies in France.

The Alumni trophy recipient in the economy category is Development Director of the Indonesian Stock Exchange (BEI), Hasan Fawzi, alumni of Master of Business Administration Institut d'Administration des Entreprises (IAE) de Grenoble, Université Pierre Mendes.

Hasan was earlier head of the system development department in PT Kliring Depositori Efek Indonesia for the 1993-1997 period, head of the information technology division in PT Kliring Penjaminan Efek Indonesia (KPEI) during the 1997-2008 period, as director in Penilai Harga Efek Indonesia (PHEI) for the 2008-2012 period, and KPEI president director for two terms: 2012-2015 and 2015-2018.

Hasan opined that getting increasingly more number of people to understand the benefits of stock exchange as the main capital for business and investment was a major challenge for him when he was the leader of the BEI.

Hasan remarked that his main task currently is ensuring the success of deepening the capital markets program in Indonesia.

"We can run the program effectively through two ways. From the offer side, we are striving to increase the number of companies that invest their stocks in the Indonesia Stock Exchange. From the demand side, we are also attempting to increase the number of active investors dealing in stock exchange activities," Hasan noted.

In the meantime, the alumni trophy recipient for the maritime cooperation category is Safri Burhanuddin, the deputy IV for coordination of human resources, science and technology, and maritime culture at the Coordinating Ministry for Maritime Affairs.

Safri is an alumnus of Master and Doctor Université de Brest Occidentale (1989-1994) and he recently also became a commissioner at state-owned train manufacturer PT Industri Kereta Api (INKA).

Safri noted that the Alumni Trophy serves as a reminder of the responsibility to establish collaboration between Indonesia and France in the maritime sector.

"We are now attempting to boost Indonesian marine research infrastructure by providing new ship research facilitated by Agence Française de Développement (AFD). We also focus on aquaculture development," he remarked.

In addition, the French government awarded four others trophies to French alumni in the gastronomic, science and research, strategy and public relations, and cultural cooperation categories.   (ANTARA)

Canadian Ambassador to Indonesia and Timor Leste, Peter MacArthur said education in Indonesia prioritizes diversity and counters inequality. This was conveyed by the Ambassador at the 152nd celebration of Canada National Day, in Jakarta, Monday (1/7). In his speech he said, in the past 3 years, he enjoyed being a speaker at various universities.

“Seeing such educational institutions standing up for diversity and everyone’s inclusion regardless of religion or ethnicity or gender or anything else reminds us of the role learning plays here, in Canada and elsewhere in reducing inequality, thereby, increasing prosperity and happiness. President Jokowi’s new focus is on technical and vocational education. Prime Minister Trudeau, who is also Minister of Youth, is a former teacher himself. Both are “HeForShe” champions for gender equality,” said Ambassador Mac Arthur.

He sees educational institutions defending the diversity and inclusion of everyone regardless of religion or ethnicity or gender. In addition to highlighting education in Indonesia, in his speech Ambassador MacArthur also highlighted the progress of the two developing countries. Last year bilateral trade between Indonesia and Canada rose 24 percent to 4 billion US Dollars. Tourism visits also rose by two digits. Furthermore, the Ambassador highlighted the commitment of the two countries to fulfill all obligations of the Paris Accord to slow down climate change by protecting forests, peatlands and mangroves. (VOI/SEKAR)

Indonesian Minister of Communication and Information Rudiantara said the Indonesian government opened opportunities for cooperation with Canada in the field of information and technology. Speaking at the 152nd Canadian National Day celebration, in Jakarta, Monday (July1), Minister Rudiantara said that Indonesia has proposed the concept of 'Inclusive Digital Economy Accelerator Hub' (IDEA Hub) when attending the G20 Summit in Osaka, Japan recently. This proposal, according to the Minister, opens opportunities for Indonesia and Canada to collaborate in the field of information technology that continues to grow.

"We welcome cooperation in future economy opportunity in such as human center artificial intelligence up to the data free flow with trust that we have to deal with in 5 years down the road. And to ensure that no man left behind," said Rudiantara.

President Joko Widodo when attending the G20 Summit in Osaka, Japan, proposed the concept of 'Inclusive Digital Economy Accelerator Hub' - IDEA Hub. IDEA Hub is conceptualized as a global forum for digital business people, especially those with the status of Unicorn. IDEA Hub is intended to gather ideas and sharing experiences that are expected to benefit the government, the private sector, as well as micro, small and medium-scale businesses. President Joko Widodo said that the IDEA hub proposal was initiated to reduce the number of social and economic disparities between countries. Learning about digital business models in IDEA Hub includes three areas of information, namely sharing economy, workforce digitalization, and financial inclusion. (VOI/NDY/AHM)