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.
View
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.
ViewUniversitas Gadjah Mada has ranked 19 in Asian universities based on an assessment from the 2020 rating agency 4 International Colleges & Universities (4ICU). Apart from UGM, 18 other Indonesian universities are also included in the top 200 universities in Asia. UGM is in the first position in Indonesia. 4ICU is a global university ranking agency that measures digital presence and popularity based on the number of web traffic, content trustworthiness, and popularity of web links.
Director of the Directorate of Information Systems and Resources (DSSDI) UGM, Widyawan, Ph.D. explained that this achievement was an appreciation from the international rating agency for the hard work of the UGM academic community in utilizing information technology in the fields of education, teaching, and research. According to Widyawan, this ranking shows the international recognition of digital adoption at UGM. During the Covid-19 pandemic, UGM has used information technology in carrying out lectures, community services, and other activities. Since last March, UGM has implemented an online learning process, which will also take place entering the odd semester of the 2020/2021 Academic Year.
The use of the online learning system at UGM itself is not new this year. Prior to the outbreak of the Covid-19 pandemic, UGM had provided an online learning system, including elok.ugm.ac.id, elisa.ugm.ac.id, and simaster.ugm.ac.id. for academic administration. Besides, each faculty or school at UGM also has a task force that is responsible for supporting the development of the online learning process. Widyawan revealed that the recognition could be achieved, thanks to various developments that UGM continues to do both in terms of information technology infrastructure and the quality of digital content.
Proud news came from Nila Eleora Putri Sianturi, a student of SMAN (State Senior High School) 68 Jakarta won a gold medal for the best female poster category at the "21st International High Schools Arts Festival" (IHSAF), which was held in Tokyo, Japan from 5 to until 16 August 2020. The announcement was made directly by Haruhisa Handa, Chair of the International Foundation for Arts and Culture (IFAC). Competition and festival were held without the participants directly attending, considering that the event is still in the period of the global Covid-19 epidemic. The participants, who took part in the IFAC competition, had to pass a selection process from their respective countries. Nila Eleora Putri Sianturi is a gold medalist at the 2019 National Student Arts Festival and Competition (FLS2N) organized by the Ministry of Education and Culture.
Nila’s poster has a theme “Don’t Let Them Lay on the Streets for Too Long”. In this theme, Nila highlighted the biggest problem in society, namely street children, and children who are poor and homeless.She added that children often become victims of abuse and exploitation. According to Nila, street children need attention not only from the government, but also from all parties. They need sympathy and deserve it but many people still don't care and ignore them.
Acting Head of the National Achievement Center at the Ministry of Education and Culture, Asep Sukmayadi said that IFAC activities should be viewed as a valuable opportunity not only to strengthen friendly relations, expand networks, but also to advance global cooperation in the development, quality and sustainable world arts and culture.
The festival, which was organized by IFAC, was participated in by 18 countries for the category of posters and paintings. Apart from these categories, there are also categories for Japanese art and culture. In the poster and painting category, each country sends a maximum of four nominations for the best work to IFAC and then one winner from each country is selected to attend the award ceremony. The four nominees for the best work that were sent are the winners of the 2019 National Student Art Festival and Competition (FLS2N) held in Bandar Lampung City, Lampung Province in the field of male and female category posters.
In general, tires in motor vehicles need air. But with technological sophistication, many companies are trying to develop airless tire technology. But, the Army's Polytechnic of the Doctrine, Education and Training Guidance of the Indonesian Armed Forces (Poltekad Kodiklat TNI AD) creates aairless tires. The innovation is a new idea for the national automotive world. This tire has one advantage: it is leak proof whether it is pierced by nails or fired by a bullet. Brigadier General Nugraha Gumilar, Commander of Poltekad Kodiklat TNI AD, explained that currently, the airless tires are in the quality improvement stage. Afterwards, if the research and development results have been conducted and the airless tires are ready for use without further testing, the tires will be mass produced.
The airless tires created by TNI have hollows without any air in them. To secure this tire to the axle, five bolts are used on the rim of the car. The tires can easily pass through various tested terrains such as flat roads, rocky roads, rough rocks, and even rows of nails. The tires remain in their original position and do not experience a lack of pressure or deflated. In the future, the tires will be used on TNI AD military vehicles while on the battlefiled.
Brigadier General Nugraha Gumilar further stated that the manufacture of the airless tires was inspired by international tire manufacturer, Michelin. This is a French tire company which is known to have been developing airless tires for private car use since several years ago. By making it domestically, Nugraha emphasized that the community would not depend on foreign products later. This will reduce the need for imported air-free tires because they are in Indonesia. He believes that the quality of automotive components made by Poltekad students will not be inferior to foreign companies.
Tourism is one of the sectors that has experienced a major decline due to the Covid-19 pandemic. In this New Normal Era, the tourism industry can run again, The Ministry of Tourism and Creative Economy launched a health protocol campaign to present clean, healthy, safe and environmentally sustainable destinations. One of the efforts, which is conducted, was by launching the CARE Indonesia Program in July. The Indonesia Care campaign was marked by the screening of the "Indonesia Care" campaign video at Studio XXI Plaza Senayan in Jakarta. At the same time, a video health protocol guide was also launched in hotels, restaurants and cinemas at Studio XXI Plaza Senayan.
According to Minister of Tourism and Creative Economy -Wishnutama, Indonesia Care is a communication strategy for how Indonesia can carry out various activities in the tourism sector and the creative economy. The principles are to prioritize cleanliness, health, and environmental sustainability, both for actors and consumers. The symbol "InDOnesia CARE" highlights the phrase "I DO CARE" to emphasize that Indonesia pays a serious attention to the cleanliness, health and safety of tourists.
Besides the guides on tourism objects, hotels and restaurants, the Ministry of Tourism and Creative Economy also has health protocols for the creative industry. The guides aim to provide tourists a sense of comfort in the middle of an adaptation transition period to new normal. Each guide is made in detail, including general and specific guidelines according to government regulations. General guidelines cover management or governance that is applied to all parties, from employers or managers, employees, guests, until the government and related associations. Meanwhile, a special guide lists the do's and don't things, including the provision of standard operational procedures (SOPs) to minimize direct contact. Through booklets, articles and video tutorials from various sectors of the tourism industry and creative economy, the information in InDOnesia CARE is said to be updated regularly.
To help overcome the Covid-19 pandemic in Indonesia, four students from the Department of Shipping Engineering at the November 10 Institute of Technology (ITS) who joined the Doa Ibu Team successfully innovated a transporter ship for medical services. This innovation was the highest achievement in the Covid-19 Innovative and Inspirational Application Competition (LAI2) by winning the 1st place in the Transporter Ship sub-competition. The four students: Michael Wei, Haritz Azzarie, Novi Anggia, and Fadilla Rafiansyah Anwar initiated the idea of converting the semi-hospital pioneer ship. This innovation is a conversion design of the pioneering ship named KM Sabuk Nusantara 99.
Michael revealed that the idea came from the lack of facilities to handle Covid-19 patients, and the availability of several vessels functioning for hospitals. Based on these two things, the idea of converting pioneer ships equipped with medical facilities emerged. This ship conversion is to short the production of a large number of ships. According to Michael, not all parts of the ship were converted, so the ship still has the functions as passenger carriers and logistics.
The conversion was only half of the main deck and crew deck. For the main deck, half of the passenger area with 236 cubic meters was converted. It is used as the patient rooms, medical waste treatment rooms, oxygen rooms, bedrooms for nurses and doctors, and other needs related to the handling of the Covid-19. While for the crew deck, the first-class rooms were converted into embarkation access. Michael added that another innovation is the Covid-19 handling room partition, so other rooms on the pioneer ship were not contaminated. In addition, the application of Negative Room Pressure, which is integrated with the High-Efficiency Particulate Air (HEPA) filter is to ensure that other rooms are safe. Michael also said the excellence of this innovation is in the conversion of pioneering ships so that the ship's construction time could be cut short and minimize costs. But it is still considering an effective, efficient, and ergonomic design based on several reference designs from hospitals, and also other treatment facilities on land or ships.
When buying products, especially through online, it is important to know the legality and health safety of the products. Probably, some products have the BPOM logo, but there are some products without the BPOM logo. Therefore, the Food and Drug Supervisory Agency or BPOM has made the BPOM Check application and the cekbpom.pom.go.id website to protect consumer safety from hazardous chemicals. Of course, it makes easy for consumers to know whether the product is safe or not to be consumed or used in the body.
Requirements to check products are relatively easy. Consumers only need to input the registration number, product name, brand, until name of the registrant. So, consumers can already know whether the product has been officially registered or not on the official website of the BPOM. The easiest way when checking the BPOM number of a product is to check based on the brand or product name. Meanwhile, if the BPOM number is already printed on the product packaging, the consumer only needs to match the validity of the product information. Because there are also some products that have fake BPOM number, but the products are still circulating at the market.
Consumers, who find facts of forgery in the field, can immediately report to the BPOM. So, the case is immediately followed up. Of course, there are some data which must be filled by the consumer such as identity of the consumer, filling of the complaint, product acquisition address, until uploading the evidence of the product which is suspected of being dangerous. To conduct the complaint, the consumer can visit website https://ulpk.pom.go.id/, just click the menu “Complaining Form”.
Covid-19 pandemic makes people do various innovations. Competing in the LAI2-Covid 19 event, the Kuybot Team consisting of three students from the Department of Systems and Industrial Engineering, the Department of Biomedical Engineering, and the Department of Physics Engineering won the first place in creating the Robot Innovation Application. The name of the robot given is Hosiro-Usiro. Oktaviansyah Purwo Bramastyo as the team leader said that his team wanted to contribute to helping medical staff through their robot creation.
Hosiro, which stands for Hospital Robot System, is a robot system that is devoted to handling Covid-19 in the hospital. Hosiro has a service function in terms of delivery of food and medicine, checking the physical condition of the patient in the form of body temperature and heart rate, and can be used by patients as a medium of interaction. Meanwhile, Usiro which stands for Universal System Robot is a robot that has a service function for independent quarantine patients. The function of Usiro's services can be in the form of interactions with others, buying or taking food from online taxi-bike, and matters relating to interaction. Usiro is also equipped with a treadmill as a robot for road control. Through robot control using this treadmill, patients who do isolation can socialize virtually. So, the effect can reduce the patient's stress when he or she is quarantined independently.
Hosiro and Usiro robots have advantages over other robots, which have two functions or 2 in 1. In addition to serving patients, the Hosiro-Usiro robot can also sterilize themselves and have an automatic door-opening system. In terms of design, this robot has a large storage box to deliver food, medicine, and clothes. It can also be used for communication between medical personnel-patients, measuring patient temperature, detecting blood pressure and heart rate of patients, as well as being a means of recreational media for patients.
According to the research of the World Health Organization -WHO, disinfectants with alcohol content contain dangerous heavy metal compounds. Besides skin irritation and skin cancer, disinfectants can also cause lung cancer if inhaled for a long time. Though the use of disinfectants during this pandemic is so huge. Viewing this condition, the Center for Research and Development of Forest Products, the Indonesian Ministry of Environment and Forestry in cooperation with Producer's Cooperative of Anugerah Bumi Hijau (Koprabuh) has created a natural disinfectant that is proven to be very safe for human health. The result of this National Innovation product is that the product is branded ‘DEASEP’. Made from wood vinegar, this organic raw product is without using alcohol and any chemicals. Therefore, this disinfectant product is not harmful to humans or pets. Even the product can be used as animal feed and plant fertilizer.
Koprabuh CEO, Yohanis Walean explained that wood vinegar or wood acid is a liquid produced by pyrolysis or thermal decomposition of the charcoal production process, with low oxygen levels. After decades of successful use of wood vinegar as a bio-pesticide and bio-fertilizer, the P3HH researchers conducted further research in which the wood vinegar is used to combat Covid-19. Similarly, the results of their products proved to be effective after testing, which is conducted in an environmental laboratory.
Meanwhile, Prof. Gustan Pari along with Ratih Damayanti and the Team have conducted research in which the results of the research shows that wood vinegar has a better ability to inhibit the growth of microorganisms, compared with 70 percent ethanol (alcohol), which has often been used as a basis for disinfectants by Fostered Farmers of P3HH. Disinfectants usually contain of alcohol components such as ethyl and isopropyl alcohol. These chemicals are flammable and can cause skin infections. Alcohol exposure can also cause irritation to the respiratory tract and negatively impact the central nervous system. While the use of the DEASEP as an Out-door and In-door disinfectant is effective in combating COVID 19. DEASEP is not harmful to humans even if being ingested is not dangerous but more effective than 70-percent alcohol.
The Monument of Soekarno has been inaugurated in Algiers as an eternal symbol of Friendship between Algeria and Indonesia.
The monument of Soekarno was inaugurated in Algiers, Algeria on Saturday (18/7). The monument proves that friendship between Indonesia and Algeria has existed for a long time. It symbolizes the gratitude of the Algerian people for President Soekarno who has inspired the independence of Algeria internationally to declare independence at the Asia Africa Conference in Bandung, West Java. For Indonesia, the monument is a sincere appreciation from Indonesia to Algeria as a friendly country that continuously voices and supports the principles of world peace and prosperity based on equal rights and independence.
Indonesian Ambassador to Algeria, Safira Machrusah in her remarks stated that the monument of Soekarno will be a reminder for Algerians and Indonesians, particularly the young generation to keep the principles of patriotism, unity, the struggle for independence, peace and world prosperity.
The monument of Soekarno shapes like a crescent moon with five-star pillar in each corner. It symbolizes the moon and crescent shape of the Algerian national flag. In each of its small pillars, there is Bandung Dasasila text or ten principles which were adopted at the Asian-African Conference in 1955, as a joint declaration of Asian and African countries to voice independence, equality and world peace. The monument is expected to become a monumental history that can build a strong belief foundation to develop political, economic and cultural dialogues and other interests bilaterally and multilaterally, especially between Indonesia and Algeria.
Minister of Trade, Agus Suparmanto conveyed that his Ministry and the Ministry of Defense are exploring the mechanism of implementing counter trade with several trading partner countries. He also explained that several commodities that are ready to be traded consist of palm oil, rubber, machinery, coffee and its derivatives, cocoa and its derivatives, textile products, tea, footwear, processed fish, furniture, fruits, copra, plastics and their derivatives, resins, paper, as well as spices. The benefits of the counter trade are to overcome exporting obstacles abroad and expand market areas and market new products, provide additional exports, save foreign exchange, and cope with difficulties in imports due to foreign exchange limitations. In addition, this counter trade also accelerates the transfer of technology and knowledge, supports efforts to create a trade balance and payments, and increases production and expands employment opportunities.
The Ministry of Trade through Indonesian Trade Promotion Center of Los Angeles and the Indonesian Center for Export Education and Training held a virtual business matching. The event that took place on Tuesday (7/14) was aimed at boosting national exports amid Covid-19 pandemic. The business matching succeeded in bringing together 12 Small Medium Entrepreneurs of the export-oriented food and beverage sector with US buyers such as Jans Enterprise Corp., Takari International, Belift Coffee, and Beaneka Coffee.
Indonesia’s Diaspora in Britain wants Indonesian culinary to be present in Britain more widely. The recognition of Indonesian culinary opportunities was revealed in a virtual meeting of British Indonesian lovers with the theme "Indonesian Cuisine" organized by the Indonesian Embassy in London in collaboration with The Anglo-Indonesian Society (AIS), in London last Tuesday (14/7). Therefore, the Indonesian Embassy in London and AIS invited Chef William Wongso, Chef Petty Elliott and Sri Owen to share their experiences to the British people in the virtual meeting. The Indonesian Embassy in London also invited local residents from various backgrounds, such as young professionals, culinary lovers, culturalists, and Indonesianists.