VOI - Voice of Indonesia | RRI - Radio Republik Indonesia

The Indonesian state-owned bank, BNI inaugurated a new BNI Seoul office and the establishment of the Korea Desk in Seoul, South Korea on April 16. Indonesian Ambassador to South Korea, Umar Hadi and General Manager of the BNI Seoul Branch Office, Anisfu symbolically inaugurated the BNI New Office. Deputy President Director of BNI, Adi Sulistyowati and Director of Treasury and several other BNI directors from Jakarta were virtually present.

On this occasion, Ambassador Umar Hadi said that his side always adheres to the principle of Indonesia Incorporated, namely all elements, namely the Government, State-Owned Enterprises (BUMN) and the private sector, move in one unified step. The presence of this new office and the Korea Desk will make the Overseas Branch Office (KCLN) a trade & investment center, and strengthen the support for Indonesian Micro-small and medium enterprises' efforts to penetrate the global market.

Minister for State-Owned Enterprises, Erick Tohir also gave a speech at the inauguration. He said that the presence of BNI in Seoul has a deeper meaning than just its economic role. The existence of BNI in Seoul proves that the cooperation between Indonesia and South Korea is close and they have established diplomatic relations for 48 years. The close relationship and bilateral cooperation open opportunities for cooperation in various sectors.

The inauguration of this office was also attended by several South Korean companies that have collaborated with BNI, including Lotte Mart, Samsung and LG. Currently, the cooperation that has been running from the consumer business side includes credit card co-branding products, support programs at product launching and also advisory services.

The close relationship between South Korea and Indonesia is strongly driven by investment and trade activities of both countries. South Korea is Indonesia's fifth largest trading partner with a trade volume of more than US$13,335 million. The presence of BNI in Seoul aims to seize these opportunities.

Talaga Bodas Garut is a mountainous tourism attraction in the form of a lake created in a mountain crater. The name Bodas is used because the lake water with a diameter of 2 kilometres looks white. This is because the water content of the lake that is formed from this crater contains sulphur. Talaga Bodas crater is located on the slopes of Mt. Galunggung at an altitude of 1,512 meters above sea level. An area of 23.85 hectares is directly adjacent to forests and beautiful verdant mountains. The water is widely used by local residents as a source of hot water and health treatment.

Talaga Bodas Garut is one of the craters of Mt. Galunggung which erupted hundreds of years ago. The temperature of the crater tourism area on the north side of the mountain is cold. The best time to visit this spot is during daytime to enjoy a million charms of the crater. This crater is elongated with views of the hills around it. Many tourist activities can be done in this tourism area, such as trekking and hiking, walking around the crater, bathing in hot water pools, and taking selfies. On the lower right side of this tourism attraction, there are three natural hot water soaking pools. Two pools are available for children and one for adults. The water temperature in this pool is relatively warm, so it is quite comfortable for tourists. This natural hot spring pool is located adjacent to the Talaga Bodas crater. Tourists can soak free of charge in the pool for relaxation. Soaking in this hot pool makes the body feel fresh.

There are several routes that can be accessed to get to this tourism destination which is located in Sukamenak Village, Wanaraja District, Garut, West Java. If you depart from Garut, you can use the Suci, Karangpawitan, to Wanaraja routes which are about 27.6 kilometres away. If you drive a personal motor vehicle without getting stuck in traffic, it may only take about 1 hour and 10 minutes. This is because Karangpawitan and Wanaraja areas often become congestion points, especially during rush hours. At the end of the crater road, there are several huts and toilets. The parking area has been well managed and organized. A prayer room and a row of culinary stalls complement the facilities in this area. Arrangements are also carried out at the entrance gate, making a fence between the lake area and the mainland. As well as repair and manufacture of pipes from springs in the area around the lake. There are toilets and places to change clothes around the hot water soaking pool. The local staffers continue to develop existing facilities to support tourists’ comfort. You can visit this tourism spot every day from 7 am to 5 pm by paying an entrance ticket for Rp. 10,000.

The Central Statistics Agency last Thursday released data on the Indonesia’s trade balance for March 2021, which showed an improvement in the value of exports and imports. The performance in March showed a strong increase with growth of 30.47 percent and 25.73 percent respectively on an annual basis (year-on-year). On a monthly basis, significant increases in exports and imports occurred in the oil and gas and non-oil and gas sectors when compared to February 2021.

On one hand, export performance in the first quarter of 2021 shows positive developments amid the recovery of demand, and is also supported by rising commodity prices. Signs of stronger economic recovery are also consistent with manufacturing activity in Indonesia's main trading partners, such as China, the United States and the European Union, which have expanded for 8 consecutive months. On the other hand, import performance will also experience an increase due to domestic demand starting to recover and the existence of a low-based effect last year.

The trade balance surplus is projected to continue throughout semester I / 2021. This was driven by the solid export performance of major export commodities, such as crude palm oil (CPO) and coal, as well as the global economic recovery. However, it should be noted, according to researchers, as it enters semester II / 2021, it is estimated that imports will soar along with the acceleration of economic growth by strengthening domestic consumption and increasing fixed capital investment activity. The growth in the trade balance, seen at least in February 2021, is expected to widen the current account deficit (CAD) in 2021 to -1 (minus one) percent of this year's Gross Domestic Product. Of course, this needs to be watched out for because it will affect the growing national economic growth. However, with the government’s efforts, the surplus that has been achieved in the first quarter is expected to continue the economic recovery in 2021.

The great mosque of Al-Falah or it is well known as Seribu Tiang mosque is the biggest one in Jambi. It was established in 1971 and finished in 1980.  It was also inaugurated by President Soeharto on 29 September 1980. This mosque is located at Sultan Thaha Syaifuddin street No 60 in Legok sub-district. The mosque land covers 26. 890 meter squares or more than 2,7 hectares.  Meanwhile, the building area of the mosque is 6,400 square meters with a size of 80 meters x 80 meters.  This mosque can accommodate 10 thousand jamaahs or worshipers.

The great mosque of Al-Falah was completely built with a large dome and high tower. The entire mosque building uses reinforced concrete material. In spite of getting the epithet of the mosque with one thousand poles, the number of poles is not so many as its name.  The great mosque of Al Falah has only 232 poles divided into two poles. First, smaller poles support the outer roof of the mosque. Two pillars with a golden color support the center of the mosque.

The Seribu Tiang Mosque was designed as an open building without doors and windows. This is in line with the name of this mosque “Al-Falah“ which means Victory in Arabic language. The victory means having freedom without the shackles. This philosophy is considered to be the basis for the construction of the mosque with an open concept. So, any Muslim community is free to enter and carry out worship in this mosque. Meanwhile, the inside part of the dome is decorated with symmetrical ornamentation.  The large ring under the dome is decorated with gold colored Al-Quran calligraphy paintings.  A very large chandelier made of copper beautifies the appearance of the space under the dome.