VOI - Voice of Indonesia | RRI - Radio Republik Indonesia

Minister of Village, Development of Disadvantaged Regions, and Transmigration of the Republic of Indonesia Eko Putro Sandjojo said, since the establishment of diplomatic relations between Indonesia and the Czech Republic in 1993, the two countries have cooperated in various fields, including education, tourism and trade. In the field of trade, the trade value of Indonesia and the Czech Republic has increased steadily, namely by 5 percent. However, this has not reflected the real potential of trade relations between the two countries. For this reason, cooperation between the two the country must continue to be improved. This was stated by Minister Eko Putro Sandjojo in his remarks on the 100th anniversary of the foundation of the former Czechoslovakia in Jakarta, Tuesday, Nov. 6, 2018.

“In bilateral trade relation, we observe a steady rise of 5% each year. In 2017 in value reached 265 million US dollar. This however, does not reflect the true potential of our relation. The visit my business delegation accompanied by his Excellency Milan Stechlast September is one among many ways to increase our trade value, by bringing together our business and to frequent our contact among them,” Eko Putro Sandjojo said.

Minister Eko Putro Sandjojo further said, Czech Republic businessmen had invested in micro finance activities in Indonesia since 5 years ago. // The Minister invited other Czech businessmen to participate in investing in Indonesia too, because there are still a lot of potential in rural areas that had not yet been explored. (VOI / AHM)

Youth is the key to development. Therefore, youth and education cooperation must be continuously improved. This was stated by the Indonesian Minister of Village, Development of Disadvantaged Regions, and the Transmigration, Eko Putro Sandjojo in his remarks at the celebration of 100th Anniversary of the Foundation of the former Czechoslovakia in Jakarta, Tuesday (6/11). Since 1995, Indonesia has invited around 190 Czech Republic students to study in Indonesia through various scholarships.

 

"Since 1995 Indonesia has invited approximately 190 Czech Republic students to learn Bahasa Indonesia through Dharma Siswa scholarship as well as through art and culture scholarship program. Equally, I’m hoping to see more Indonesian students to study at the University in Czech Republic. I’m proud that two oldest universities in Czech Republic are offering Indonesian studies as one of its Department," Eko Putro Sandjojo said.

Eko Putro Sandjojo further added that the visit of the President of the Czech Republic Senate in September 2018 had further strengthened bilateral relations and cooperation between the two countries. Also present at celebration of 100th Anniversary of the Foundation of the former Czechoslovakia are Czech Minister of Defense Lubomir Metnar who leads the Czech Republic delegation at the 2018 Indo-Defense Expo and Forum Exhibition in Jakarta. (VOI / AHM)

The Tourism Ministry is eyeing the millennial market at London’s World Travel Market (WTM) by establishing some 100 tourist destinations to serve as photo spots and be showcased on social media platforms, including Instagram. Tourism Minister Arief Yahya told Antara, in London on Tuesday, that so far, only few countries are really eyeing the millennial tourist market, whereas the market share of such class of tourists was quite large, reaching some 50 percent of the total tourists. According to Yahya, millennial tourists are aware of the need to be recognized through beautiful photographs that they upload on their Instagram accounts. At present, the number of active Instagram users reaches more than 400 million every month. Yahya remarked that the ministry will prepare attractions or tourism events to draw more millennial tourists. "Are the existing events in line with the millennial generation`s needs and styles," the minister stated, adding that the main characteristic of the millennial generation is their active presence in cyberspace. Yahya remarked that the Ministry of Tourism will increase tourism promotion by utilizing digital media, building a broad digital tourism network to encourage online businesses, and significantly using social media in all markets. He noted that in 2016, some 49 percent of the tourists visiting Indonesia belonged to the millennium generation and were in the age group of 35 years and under, and this figure had continued to grow. "Hence, we use the digital tourism approach to promote Indonesian tourism in the country and abroad to reach the millennial generation," the minister noted. He said the World Travel and Tourism Council declared that Indonesia`s tourism sector ranked ninth in the world and that the country had the fastest growth in tourism in Southeast Asia. The Telegraph places Indonesia among the 20 fastest growing countries in the tourism sector, with a growth of 22 percent in 2017, thus being four times higher than the regional growth of seven percent and global growth at 6.4 percent. In Indonesia, the tourism sector is most prominent among other industries. Meanwhile, according to the World Economy Forum, Indonesia`s Competitiveness Index also showed a significant growth, with an increase of eight points, from 50 in 2015 to 42 in 2017. The tourism sector`s contribution to state revenues was recorded at US$15 billion in 2017, higher than $12.2 million in 2015 and $13.6 billion in 2016. The number of foreign tourist visits to Indonesia also increased significantly, from 9.7 million in 2015 to 11.5 million and 14 million in 2016 and 2017 respectively. As of September 2018, the number of foreign tourists visiting Indonesia had increased by 11.81 percent as compared to that in the same period last year. "We estimate that the number of tourists will reach 17 million by the end of 2018. We think it is not difficult to reach the target of 20 million tourists by 2019," the minister affirmed. President Joko Widodo had earlier stated that tourism was one of the leading sectors in Indonesia, so all ministries and institutions support the development of this sector. In addition, the government prioritizes and makes tourism the main pillar of the country`s economic growth, Yahya stated. (ANTARA)

As a country with sufficient industry both in the world and one of the developed countries in the European Union, the Czech Republic is very pleased to be able to cooperate with all countries in the world in various fields, especially in combating terrorism. One of them is by participating in the Indo Defense Expo which will be held in Jakarta on November 7 to 10 2018. It was stated by Ambassador of the Czech Republic to Indonesia Ivan Hotek to the Voice of Indonesia after Violin Concert to commemorate the 100th anniversary of the founding of the former Czechoslovakia on Monday ( 5/11) in Jakarta. According to Ivan Hotek, Indonesia is an important and strategic country for the Czech Republic.

 

"Indonesia is a very important and strategic partner for us. Indo Defense will be visible, will be interesting for Indonesian side events. We will have, If I'm not wrong, around 15 companies," said Ivan Hotek.

Ivan Hotek added that the delegation of the Czech Republic in the Indo-Defense Expo will be led by the Czech Republic Minister of Defense. In addition to participating in the Indo-Defense Expo 2018, the delegation along with the Czech Republic Embassy in Jakarta will also hold a concert for the victims of natural disasters in Indonesia. The Czech Ambassador also expressed his condolences for the disaster that had occured in Indonesia. The Government of the Czech Republic together with the International Red Cross will bring assistance to victims of natural disasters in Indonesia. (VOI / AHM)