VOI - Voice of Indonesia | RRI - Radio Republik Indonesia

VOINews, Jakarta - Indonesian President Joko Widodo (Jokowi) received a state visit from Emperor of Japan Hironomiya Naruhito and Empress Masako Owada at the Bogor Presidential Palace, West Java, on Monday.

Emperor Naruhito and the Japanese delegation arrived at the Bogor Palace at around 10 a.m. local time and were welcomed by the Nusantara troops and cavalry as well as the music corps of the Presidential Security Detail (Paspampres).

President Jokowi and First Lady Iriana welcomed Emperor Naruhito and Empress Masako. The welcome ceremony was marked by the playing of national anthems of the two countries and firing of 21 cannons.

After the cannons were fired, the two leaders inspected the army of honor.

Jokowi and Naruhito then introduced the delegations of each country.

Members of the Indonesian delegation comprised Foreign Minister Retno Marsudi, Cabinet Secretary Pramono Anung, Public Works and Public Housing Minister Basuki Hadimuljono, Transportation Minister Budi Karya Sumadi, Indonesian Ambassador to Japan Heri Akhmadi, and the Foreign Ministry's Director General of Asia-Pacific and African Affairs Abdul Kadir Jailani.

After introducing each other's delegations, Jokowi invited Naruhito and Masako to take pictures together and sign the state guest book at the Teratai (Lotus) Room.

Jokowi and Naruhito then headed to the veranda for brief talks before planting an agarwood tree together. Jokowi also showed a super red arowana fish that was handed over to Naruhito.

The agenda continued with a visit to Griya Anggrek in the palace to see the collection of orchids and then closed with a luncheon.

Emperor Naruhito's visit this time to Indonesia was his first since having assumed the throne on May 1, 2019.

Naruhito and Masako, on a five-day visit to Indonesia, arrived at the Soekarno-Hatta International Airport, Banten, on Saturday (June 17).

Press Secretary to Japan's Emperor, Kojiro Shiojiri, said Naruhito was invited by Jokowi, who had visited Japan in July 2022. Shiojiri said Emperor Naruhito was eager to see the development of relations between Indonesia and Japan.

In addition, the emperor's visit this year holds significance on account of 65 years of diplomatic relations between Indonesia and Japan and also marking 50 years of relations between the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) and Japan. (Antaranews)

VOINews, Jakarta - The Ministry of Environment and Forestry reported that forest and land fires had ravaged 28,019 hectares of land in Indonesia from January to mid-June 2023, releasing 2.84 million tons of carbon dioxide emissions.

"Cross-sectoral collaboration is carried out to maintain the safety of areas, which are prone to the forest and land fires," the ministry's Director of Forest and Land Fires Control Thomas Nifinluri said in a statement quoted here Sunday.

Based on the ministry's Sipongi+ data, the five provinces with the widest forest and land fires-ravaged areas are East Nusa Tenggara (NTT), with 5,211 hectares; West Kalimantan (4,172 hectares); Lampung (2,272 hectares); Southeast Sulawesi 
(1,961 hectares); and Maluku with 1,953 hectares.

The government has carried out weather modification in Riau, Jambi, South Sumatra, West Kalimantan, and East Nusa Tenggara.

The weather modification will be continued in Indonesia's parts of Kalimantan Island to anticipate the forest and land fires that potentially occur due to the El Nino phenomenon, especially from July to October 2023.

The weather modification in West Kalimantan and Central Kalimantan will be carried out on June 23 and June 25 respectively by using the Cassa 212 aircraft. The same operation will also be conducted in South Kalimantan, he said.

In addition, the weather modification will also be carried out in Riau and East Kalimantan to anticipate land and forest fires in the two provinces' vulnerable areas.

The weather modification is part of efforts to prevent forest and land fires by wetting peatlands.

If hotspots appear around areas owned by private companies, the government assigns them to deal with the forest and land fires.

Nifinluri expressed hope that the synergy that has been established well can be continued and the incidence of wildfires can be made under control.

Earlier, Environment and Forestry Minister Siti Nurbaya Bakar in a statement on Wednesday (June 14) stated that the Indonesian Government readied 15 aircraft for carrying out weather modification operations to prevent the wildfires.

Bakar noted that seven provinces had declared an emergency alert status for the disasters. Those provinces comprise Riau, South Sumatra, Jambi, West Kalimantan, NTT, Central Kalimantan, and South Kalimantan. (Antaranews)

VOINews, Jakarta - Tourism and Creative Economy Minister Sandiaga Salahuddin Uno encouraged Denpasar City, Bali, to immediately join the UNESCO Creative Cities Network (UCCN) to boost the development of micro, small, and medium enterprises (MSMEs) which will help create more jobs.

“I encourage the government, creative industry players, and residents to collaborate and innovate in the development of the creative economy sector,” he said here on Sunday.

He made the statement at an event entitled “Wandering Nusantara at Bali Frangipani Palace” attended by MSME and creative economy players in Denpasar City.

He assessed that if Denpasar can join the UCCN, it will have the opportunity to build cooperation with other regions in sustainable city development.

He expressed hope that Denpasar can follow the step of two cities that have represented Indonesia in the creative cities network in 2023, namely Surakarta and Depok.

Earlier, other cities had joined the network, namely Bandung as the City of Design, Ambon as the City of Music, Pekalongan as the City of Art, and Jakarta as the City of Literature.

Uno also hoped Denpasar would decide on its mainstay economic sub-sector as soon as possible to support the city as a creative city.

Apart from that, he also encouraged the creative economy players to improve the quality of their products.

He assessed that the recovery of the tourism sector will affect the opening of markets for creative economy players which will keep people's economy moving.

Meanwhile, Denpasar Regional Secretary Ida Bagus Alit Wiradana said Denpasar City is ready to develop its tourism instruments.

"The Denpasar City Government is ready to collaborate and innovate to continuously support the revival of the tourism and creative economy sectors, especially after the COVID-19 pandemic hit," he remarked.

He expressed optimism that Denpasar's historical aspects and heritage areas, as well as its sister city program with other cities abroad, will become the city's selling points. (Antaranews)

VOINews, Jakarta - Indonesia has been elected as one of four countries that will represent the East Asia and Pacific Region on the Executive Council of the World Tourism Organization (UNWTO) for the period 2023-2027. This result was obtained through a vote conducted at the UNWTO East Asia and Pacific Regional Commission Session in Phnom Penh, Cambodia, Friday, June 16, 2023. The session was attended by 20 countries from the East Asia and Pacific region.

In the session, Sandiaga Uno, Minister of Tourism and Creative Economy, led the Indonesian Delegation which consisted of the Indonesian Ambassador to Madrid as the Permanent Representative of Indonesia to the UNWTO, Dr. Muhammad Najib; Deputy for Resources and Institutions of the Ministry of Tourism and Creative Economy, Martini Mohamad Paham; Indonesian Ambassador to Wellington 2017-2021, Tantowi Yahya; as well as a joint team from the Ministry of Tourism and Creative Economy and Ministry of Foreign Affairs. The session was also attended by UNWTO Secretary General, Zurab Pololikashvili.

Indonesia managed to get 16 votes, which was the most votes in an election that also featured China, Japan, South Korea, and Thailand as candidates. Four of the five candidates with the most support officially represent the East Asia and Pacific Region. As such, Indonesia will replace Thailand on the UNWTO Executive Board along with Japan (15 votes), China (14 votes), and South Korea (12 Votes) for the next four years. The UNWTO Executive Board itself consists of 34 countries representing six regional commissions, namely Africa, the Americas, East Asia and the Pacific, Europe, the Middle East, and South Asia.

The election of Indonesia is a reflection of the maximum synergy between the Ministry of Tourism and Creative Economy, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the Indonesian Embassy in Madrid as the Permanent Representative of Indonesia to the UNWTO headquartered in Madrid, Spain. The success of garnering support in the election adds to the long line of recognition from the region and the world of Indonesia's role in the tourism sector. Previously, Indonesia also received widespread appreciation for successfully hosting the World Tourism Day (WTD) commemoration held in Bali on September 26-28, 2022, which was held back-to-back with the G20 Tourism Working Group meeting.

Indonesia's election as a member of the UNWTO Executive Board will add solidity to Indonesia's active role and global leadership in tourism sector cooperation. Moreover, membership on the Executive Board will also give Indonesia greater responsibility in the region as well as the opportunity to champion national interests and participate in advancing the global tourism sector.

In addition to leading the Indonesian Delegation, the Minister also signed the International Code for the Protection of Tourists (ICPT) at the session. (VOI)