The Indonesian Embassy in Beirut has acknowledged its continued support for trade cooperation improvement between Indonesia and Lebanon. Indonesian Ambassador to Lebanon Hajriyanto Y Thohari gave the Primaduta Award to Lebanese businessman and importer, George R Fattouh. The award was given for his service in helping market Indonesian products in Paris from the Middle East. The award was given at a ceremony at the Indonesian Embassy in Beirut, Thursday (11/1) Fatough, is the owner of George R. Fattouh S.A.L, a business that has been importing Indonesian products since the 1980s. It has a range of products, including: palm oil and its derivatives, oil and fats (including cocoa butter substitute, fat spread, hydrogenated palm kernel oil, and lauric confectionery fats), cardboard, stationary, and school equipment. Some Indonesian products are now even available at famous retail networks, such as Spinney’s and Carrefour. In 2022, the value imported by George R. Fattough S.A.L of Indonesian products, was 981.3 million USD. This was a 149.5 million USD increase when compared to 2021. Fattouh said Indonesian products are known for their quality and are in high demand in Lebanese markets. However, he said, the challenge now is increasing freight costs due to security challenges in the region.
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Listeners, a number of delicious dishes were served to the guests of Dhaup Ageng Pura Pakualaman Yogyakarta, at the wedding reception of the youngest son of K.G.P.A.A. Paku Alam X, namely B.P.H. Kusumo Kuntonugroho with Laily Annisa Kusumastuti which was held on January 10, 2024.Head of the Customs and Accommodation Division, Dhaup Ageng Pura Pakualaman, KRT Radyo Wisroyo said that the menu served to guests was quite varied. These menus are typical menus prepared by Pakualaman Pura, Indonesian menus and western food menus were also available. All invited guests including VIP and VVIP guests got the same menu. The first menu served to welcome guests, namely two types of welcome drink, namely lime lemongrass and ginger drink with lime. The welcome drink was given when guests sat down and watched the Bedhaya Sidamukti and Bedhaya Kakung Indrawidagda dance performances. Next, they gotsnacks for appetizer such as croquettes and other light snacks. There is a snack that is considered quite special and rare called Garulina. Garulina was the opening snack at the Pahargyan Dhaup Ageng Pakualaman lunch on the first day. Garulina has been around since the era before Indonesian independence. Garulina is actually not a typical Central Javanese food. It looks like the Lapis Legit layered cake, but there is something different, because there is a special layer like vla which is made from fresh milk, eggs and sugar. To get this sweet snack, Pakulaman Temple has to place a special order from the third generation of makers who have been pioneering since the 1950s. In Jogja, Garulina is very difficult to find and is considered rare because it is not sold every day.
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Stunting is still a major issue which is being faced by Indonesia. According to the Ministry of Health, stunting is a condition in which toddlers have a length or height that is less than their age. Stunting in toddlers includes chronic nutritional problems caused by many factors, such as socioeconomic conditions, maternal nutrition during pregnancy, infant morbidity, and lack of nutritional intake in infants. Stunting toddlers in the future will have difficulty in achieving optimal physical and cognitive development.
In 2019, the National Development Planning Agency determined 160 Cities and Regencies which were priorities for stunting management. One of them is Subang Regency in West Java Province. The Center for Appropriate Technology Research as a government institution has the responsibility to help reduce the prevalence of stunting in Indonesian toddlers, especially in Subang Regency through the Nutritious Local Food Innovation program. Through the National Research Priority for Revitalizing Food Security and Nutrition for Stunting Prevention, Ainia Herminiati and the LIPI team conducted a research 'Application of Micronutrient Premix in Complementary Foods for Mother's Milk (MP-ASI) and Its Effectiveness for Prevention of Stunting Toddlers in Subang Regency'. Ainia and the team have developed products that can be consumed by toddlers, including pudding and instant baby porridge as complementary food for mother’s milk (MP-ASI) for babies aged 6 to 24 months. The instant porridge product as MP-ASI which is given the brand 'Pro Babies' uses the basic ingredients of mocaf flour which is produced by Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises in Tanjung Siang District, Subang Regency. Mocaf flour is an intermediate product from cassava. Supporting food crops of agricultural development programs and activities in West Java Province in 2015-2019 used rice, corn, and soybean. One of the locations for the development of plant cultivation is in Subang Regency.
The "Pro Babies" product is a local food innovation made from mocaf flour with supporting ingredients of skim milk and tempe flour, fortified by micronutrient premix (Fe, Zn, vitamin B1, vitamin B2, folic acid), and enriched with inulin. The product form chosen is instant porridge and pudding with consideration of relatively long shelf life, more practical because it reduces volume and it is easy to serve and to handle in the distribution process.
Indonesian Minister of Foreign Affairs, Retno Marsudi and her Russian counterpart, Minister Sergey Lavrov co-chaired the ASEAN-Russia Special Ministerial Meeting held virtually on July 6, 2021. The meeting discussed the strategic partnership between ASEAN and Russia, which this year is entering its 25th year. Minister Retno Marsudi presented two main issues at the meeting. The first issue is about cooperation in handling the Covid-19 pandemic. Minister Retno Marsudi encourages Russia to support the fulfillment of vaccine needs in the region through dose-sharing, and prioritizes ASEAN countries as Russian vaccine recipients and explores the possibility of joint-production with ASEAN Member countries. She also called for ASEAN and Russia to jointly strengthen support for the COVAX Facility, negotiations on the TRIPS Waiver and equality of recognition for vaccines.
The second issue is related to regional architecture. Minister Retno saw the similarities in the principles of the Russian Vision regarding regional architecture and the ASEAN Outlook on the Indo Pacific (AOIP), which are becoming increasingly relevant during the Covid-19 pandemic. Indonesia also called for Russia to support ASEAN centrality and efforts to overcome the situation in Myanmar.
Regarding Russia's proposal to hold the Russia-ASEAN High Level Meeting in October 2021, Minister Retno Marsudi emphasized that the summit must be a momentum to strengthen ASEAN and Russia's partnership to overcome various challenges and also increase Russia's contribution in the region.
The meeting, which was held to encourage Russia's commitment and active role in the Southeast Asian region, has produced an outcome document in the form of a Co-chairs Summary. The point is to agree on accelerating the post-pandemic recovery process, including reducing socio-economic impacts, restoring macroeconomic and financial stability, supply chain, connectivity and strengthening environmental resilience.
The meeting also agreed on a plan to hold the ASEAN-Russia Summit in October 2021. The meeting also agreed on various collaborations in various fields, including maritime security, information and communication technology security, disaster management, and counterterrorism and trans-boundary crime.
Indonesian Ambassador to Singapore, Suryo Pratomo explained that Indonesia is recommended to increase the financial technology inclusion index of ASEAN countries. Based on its records, Indonesia's financial inclusion index is still the lowest among ASEAN countries. The financial inclusion index in Indonesia was recorded at 76 percent in 2019, while ASEAN countries, such as Singapore reached 98 percent, Malaysia 85 percent, and Thailand 82 percent. The Indonesian Embassy in Singapore reported on Thursday (1/7) that Ambassador Suryo Pratomo in his remarks at Webinar titled “the Digital and Fintech Opportunities for Indonesia and Singapore” explained that around 80 percent of Indonesia's digital industry, including the financial technology sector, is more developed in Java and Sumatra. In fact, the potential of the digital economy, such as the financial technology industry in Indonesia, is still very large, including in eastern Indonesia.
Moreover, Ambassdor Suryo Pratomo further said that building infrastructure to support the financial technology industry in Indonesia is not easy. As a wide archipelagic country, Indonesia needs a large investment to establish the facilities and infrastructure. Besides, Indonesia's digital financial literacy rate is also still low, only 35.5 percent. In fact, Indonesia has the second largest number of mobile phone users in the world. During 2020, the online transaction was estimated to reach Rp201 trillion. While, the distribution of funding through financial technology companies reached Rp155.9 trillion or it rose more than 90 percent compared to the previous year.
At the webinar attended by more than 140 participants from the Singapore and Indonesia financial technology industry, Ambassador Suryo Pratomo hopes that financial technology companies would be able to promote literacy in Indonesian society. Financial technology companies are also expected to help business players, particularly Small,Micro and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs) to integrate into the digital economy network.
Stunting is still a major issue which is being faced by Indonesia. According to the Ministry of Health, stunting is a condition in which toddlers have a length or height that is less than their age. Stunting in toddlers includes chronic nutritional problems caused by many factors, such as socioeconomic conditions, maternal nutrition during pregnancy, infant morbidity, and lack of nutritional intake in infants. Stunting toddlers in the future will have difficulty in achieving optimal physical and cognitive development.
In 2019, the National Development Planning Agency determined 160 Cities and Regencies which were priorities for stunting management. One of them is Subang Regency in West Java Province. The Center for Appropriate Technology Research as a government institution has the responsibility to help reduce the prevalence of stunting in Indonesian toddlers, especially in Subang Regency through the Nutritious Local Food Innovation program. Through the National Research Priority for Revitalizing Food Security and Nutrition for Stunting Prevention, Ainia Herminiati and the LIPI team conducted a research 'Application of Micronutrient Premix in Complementary Foods for Mother's Milk (MP-ASI) and Its Effectiveness for Prevention of Stunting Toddlers in Subang Regency'. Ainia and the team have developed products that can be consumed by toddlers, including pudding and instant baby porridge as complementary food for mother’s milk (MP-ASI) for babies aged 6 to 24 months. The instant porridge product as MP-ASI which is given the brand 'Pro Babies' uses the basic ingredients of mocaf flour which is produced by Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises in Tanjung Siang District, Subang Regency. Mocaf flour is an intermediate product from cassava. Supporting food crops of agricultural development programs and activities in West Java Province in 2015-2019 used rice, corn, and soybean. One of the locations for the development of plant cultivation is in Subang Regency.
The "Pro Babies" product is a local food innovation made from mocaf flour with supporting ingredients of skim milk and tempe flour, fortified by micronutrient premix (Fe, Zn, vitamin B1, vitamin B2, folic acid), and enriched with inulin. The product form chosen is instant porridge and pudding with consideration of relatively long shelf life, more practical because it reduces volume and it is easy to serve and to handle in the distribution process.
The Indonesian Embassy in Phnom Penh held a fun bike event titled ‘Batik-Kroma Fun Bike’. Kroma is a traditional Cambodian accessory. The fun bike was held last Wednesday (30/6) by implementing health protocols. All participants who joined had to get vaccinated against Covid-19 and to wear masks. The Indonesian Embassy also cooperated with the Cambodian Ministry of Tourism and the Cambodian Cycling Federation. According to the official release of the Indonesian Embassy in Phnom Penh, on Thursday (1/7), the participants took a 27-km route around the Angkor complex. This event opened a series of commemorations of the 76th Independence Day of the Republic of Indonesia as well as a form of support for Cambodia as the host of the 2023 SEA Games. Indonesian Ambassador to the Kingdom of Cambodia, Sudirman Haseng said that Batik-Kroma is a tangible form of implementing bilateral cooperation between Indonesia and Cambodia considering that Siem Reap and Central Java as well as Temple Tourism Park and Apsara National Authority have a Memorandum of Understanding.
The Indonesian Embassy in Bratislava in Slovakia was again conducting gastronomic diplomacy by introducing Indonesian cuisine. The diplomacy was carried out through the holding of the "Indonesian Cuisine Cooking Class 2021: Taste of Indonesia" event on Wednesday (30/6). In the event, Chef Yusuf from Indonesia demonstrated how to cook Indonesian food that is easy to do and according to Slovak tastes. These dishes include fried rice, gado-gado and dadar gulung. In addition, this event was also to introduce tempe as a "super food", an original Indonesian food since the 17th century which is easy to make and obtain and has a higher protein than beef.
The Indonesian Embassy in Rabat collaborated with Hassan I University by inaugurating the 'Indonesian Cultural Gallery' at the Hassan I University Innovation Building Library on 28 June. The 'Indonesian Cultural Gallery' featured an exhibition of photos of Indonesian flora and fauna, Indonesian traditional wedding dress and documentation of the visit of the First President of the Republic of Indonesia, Soekarno to Morocco in 1960. The inauguration of the 'Indonesian Cultural Gallery' was enlivened by the Pambahan Dance from West Sumatra and the Saman Dance from Aceh. On the same occasion, a cooperation agreement was signed between the Indonesian Embassy in Rabat and Hassan I University as well as a memorandum of understanding between Semarang State University and Hassan I University. They agreed to increase cooperation, especially in the field of education.
The Indonesian Embassy in Budapest held again the Indonesian Week activity to promote Indonesian arts and cultures and to entertain Hungarians. In its statement received by Antara News Agency in Jakarta on Tuesday (29/6), the Indonesian Embassy stated that the Indonesian Week activity initiated received a warm welcome from the Hungarian people, particularly in Szeged and Budapest cities.
The Indonesian Week activity is the first activity which was allowed to organize in the Szeged City, one of the major cities in Hungary, since the social restrictions were lifted. Indonesian Week activities consist of an exhibition of photos of the beauty of Indonesia by the famous photographer from Bali, Mario Blanco,Indonesian traditional dance performances, and Gamelan music performances.
Indonesian Ambassador to Hungary, Dimas Wahab, in his opening remarks hoped that through the activity, the Hungarian people and other foreigners in Hungary are interested in visiting Indonesia when the corona pandemic subsides. Indonesian Week at the Szent Gyorgy Albert Agora building in Szeged City from June 25 to early July 2021, performed 10 photos by Mario Blanco from almost all regions of Indonesia. Moreover, the event also performed a Javanese Gamelan music performance under-control of the Indonesian Embassy in Budapest. This performance amazed the Hungarian people, because the players are Hungarians, who got the opportunity to study Gamelan in Indonesia through the Darmasiswa Scholarship program.
Meanwhile, for the activities in Budapest which were harmonized with the Hungarian Government's Night of Museum program, the Indonesian Embassy held more interactive traditional dance and music performances with the audience on June 26, 2021. The dancers and the Balinese Rindik players, a traditional musical instrument made of Bamboo, provided short training for visitors to learn the Indonesian dances and learn to beat the Rindik. The Balinese Rindik is also played by Hungarians, alumni of Darmasiswa Indonesia, while the dancers are Indonesian diasporas and Hungarian citizens who love Indonesia.
The development of systemic therapy in the treatment of cancer has progressed rapidly in recent years. New drugs, both chemotherapy and targeted therapy, continue to emerge. The development of this massive information cannot all be recorded in the memory of the doctors. That's why, on June 25, the Indonesian Association of Oncological Surgeons launched the ISTRY Application. According to Chairman of the Indonesian Association of Oncological Surgeons, Walta Gautama, ISTRY is a part of the contribution of the Indonesian Association of Oncological Surgeons for cancer treatment in Indonesia. This is the first smart device application in Indonesia that can provide information for doctors to make clinical decisions in the field of systemic cancer therapy.
ISTRY is an android-based paid mobile application that provides an interactive platform for medical personnel to obtain information about the latest cancer therapies circulating in Indonesia, especially breast cancer, thyroid cancer, head-and-neck cancer, soft tissue cancer, skin cancer, and lymphoma. ISTRY Project Manager, Febriyanto Kurniawan said that the target users of ISTRY are surgeon oncology, oncology hematologists, and general surgeons who treat cancer patients. Furthermore, Febriyanto also said that with the ISTRY application, doctors can directly calculate the dose of chemotherapy drugs, hormonal drugs, and other cancer therapy supporting drugs. This will greatly facilitate the doctor and increase the accuracy of therapy, which will ultimately benefit patients. This application also features information on how to give/administer drugs as well as data on side effects of chemotherapy drugs and targeted therapy.
In appearance, the application is very easy to use. To be able to use it, someone only needs to download it from the appstore. In it, there are various features about cancer therapy that can be accessed by application users. This application will also be evaluated and updated every 2 years to ensure the accuracy and update information. Doctor Walta hopes that in the future, the ISTRY 1.0 application can be a guide for improving cancer therapy in Indonesia. In addition, it can also be developed in other cancer therapies, such as oncology surgery.
The Indonesian Embassy in Beirut in collaboration with Padjadjaran University and Lebanese University held an online seminar or webinar with the theme 'Arts & Cultures: Comparison & Convergence between Indonesia and Lebanon' on Saturday (26/6). The webinar aims to enhance cultural diplomacy in Lebanon. It was held in three sessions: culture, arts and discussion.
In his remarks, Indonesian Ambassador in Beirut, Hajriyanto Y. Thohari said that this online seminar aims to introduce Indonesian and Lebanese cultures and enhance bilateral cooperation in all aspects between communities. According to Ambassador Thohari, culture is also a powerful tool in enhancing bilateral, regional and multilateral cooperation. Cultural diplomacy has had far-reaching and positive results around the world.
Ambassador Hajriyanto further stated that the Indonesian Embassy in Beirut has successfully launched the 'Indonesian Corner' as an Indonesian Information Center regarding Indonesian arts, culture and products. 'Indonesian Corner' can bring good benefits and unite the close relationship between students from both countries at Lebanese University.
Ambassador Thohari hopes that this webinar can be a stepping stone for the two universities for further cooperation in the future. The speakers in their respective fields from Padjadjaran University and Lebanese University who attended were Kurniawan Saefullah, Dr Rosaria Mita Amalia and Dr Ari J Adipurwawidjana, S.S, M.A. from Padjadjaran University. Meanwhile, from Lebanese University, they were Dr. Elsa Ghusub, Dr. Ali el-Ali and Dr. Akram Kanso.
The Indonesian Embassy in Tokyo expressed its commitment to continuously promote Indonesian products in many activities in a bid to boost the domestic creative industry for national economic recovery. Indonesian Ambassador to Japan, Heri Akhmadi in a written statement in Jakarta on Saturday (26/6) believes that the creative economy is a firm sector and it will continuously grow amid the Covid-19 pandemic and economic crisis. One form of promotion of Indonesian products is that the Indonesian Embassy in Tokyo held a Creative Economy Night as well as the opening of an integrated Indonesian promotion room namely "Japan - Indonesia Partnership Lounge (JAIPONG)," at the Indonesian Embassy in Tokyo on Friday (25/6).
This promotional space exhibited Indonesia's leading export products namely various projects of Indonesia-Japan cooperation, such as the Integrated Moda Raya (MRT), Patimban Seaport, as well as information of investment, tourism, and finance. The Creative Economy Night was an initiative of the Indonesian Embassy in Tokyo and Bank Indonesia (BI) Tokyo to celebrate 2021 as the Year of the International Creative Economy and Sustainable Development initiated by Indonesia and ratified through a UN Resolution.
The event, which was opened by Ambassador Heri Akhmadi, was also attended by Indonesian Minister of Tourism and Creative Economy, Sandiaga Uno virtually. The minister emphasized that strengthening collaboration in the creative economy sector is very important to support the economic acceleration globally. He also affirmed that the Indonesian government has prepared various incentives in the creative economy sector that can be utilized by Japanese investors. He appreciated JAIPONG from the Indonesian Embassy in Tokyo as a form of promotion of Indonesia in Japan. The products exhibited in the Indonesia integrated promotion room are Indonesian wastra and jewelry products, curated from Micro Small Medium Enterprises works of under-controlled by Bank Indonesia.
Meanwhile, Deputy Governor of Bank Indonesia, Dodi Budy Waluyo in his video message confirmed that the trade cooperation between Indonesia and Japan has given benefits for the two countries. He further said there will be opportunities to increase cooperation intensity, especially for sustainable and affordable creative economic products of Indonesia in the future through a stern curation process.
The Indonesian Embassy in Bratislava in Slovakia on June 24 held an annual Indonesia-Slovak business meeting with the theme "Business without Boundary: Expanding Market Access for Indonesian and Slovak Businessmen". This activity was the third meeting that aimed to build bridges between entrepreneurs from the two countries, particularly in the trade and investment sectors.
This year, a one-on-one business matching meeting was held in a hybrid manner between 6 Slovak and Indonesian entrepreneurs. The entrepreneurs come from the food and beverages sector, such as canned food, coffee, tea, bio and halal products, defense equipment as well as the labor sector. From these six business matching meetings, 3 companies from Slovakia have agreed to follow up the results of this business matching in the near future. The implementation of this business matching is a follow-up to the Virtual Business Clinic activity organized by the Indonesian Embassy in Bratislava on June 9, 2021 for Indonesian MSME players to penetrate the Slovak market.
Indonesian Ambassador to Bratislava, Adiyatwidi Adiwoso said that "Slovakia is Indonesia's trading partner in the Central European Region and has the potential to become Indonesia's market hub in the Central and Eastern Europe Region. On one hand, geographically, Slovakia has a very strategic location because it is in “The Heart of Europe.” On the other hand, Indonesia can become the hub of the Slovak market in the ASEAN and Pacific Regions. Although up to now there have been trade relations, it is seen that there is still opportunity to improve relations in several sectors, and to increase the number of trade.
This annual business meeting activity is also the beginning of the implementation of the Indonesia - Central Europe Countries (INA-CEE) Business Forum activities. The event will be held by the Indonesian Ministry of Foreign Affairs on July 14, 2021 in a hybrid manner, in order to improve economic relations between Indonesia - Central and Eastern Europe.
Director General of Economic Cooperation at the Slovak Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Dusan Matulay as a key speaker from Slovakia appreciated this annual meeting. Even during the pandemic, trade between Indonesia and Slovakia is still relatively stable and Indonesia has a surplus. It was explained that Indonesia-Slovak cooperation could be developed in several sectors, such as information technology, medical devices, services, food (wheat), and others. According to Matulay, this kind of forum needs to be continuously supported by Slovak entrepreneurs.