VOI - Voice of Indonesia | RRI - Radio Republik Indonesia

After the tragedy of the Sriwijaya Air plane crash in the waters of Kepulauan Seribu  on Saturday (9/1), other disasters came one after another in various regions in Indonesia. A magnitude 6.2 earthquake occurred in West Sulawesi, precisely in Mamuju on January 15, destroying various buildings, including the West Sulawesi governor's office and causing dozens of deaths. This was followed by floods that hit almost the entire province of South Kalimantan, resulting in hundreds of thousands of residents forced to flee to safer areas. A day later, on January 16, there was an eruption of Mount Semeru in East Java. Of course, the lava that comes out of the mountains needs to be watched out so as not to cause casualties. To be sure, this eruption adds to the length of disaster conditions that must be watched out for and anticipated in various regions in Indonesia.

In addition, what is still of concern is the Covid-19 pandemic. In Indonesia, the number of those infected with the Covid-19 virus continues to increase. The vaccination process has indeed started. This was starting from the health workers who get the first turn to be vaccinated, followed by other Indonesian people in order of priority. Although it will take time, given the large population of Indonesia and its vast geographic conditions with so many islands, it is hoped that the vaccination process that has been planned by the government can run smoothly. Thus, the Covid-19 pandemic can be gradually overcome.

Disaster conditions are nothing new in Indonesia. Indonesia's position, which is said to be in the Ring of Fire area, because it is surrounded by active volcanoes, has indeed made the land very fertile. But at the same time, this holds the potential for seismicity and volcanic eruptions which are sometimes quite violent. Likewise with floods, it   happens quite often in Indonesia.

Indonesia's readiness to face disasters is determined by a series of anticipatory steps both by the government and people. Standard evacuation procedures and education from the start will determine the number of people who  are successfully mitigated in a disaster condition. Disaster infrastructures and facilities have also been prepared in disaster-prone areas, such as sirens marking the arrival of an earthquake with a certain magnitude or the readiness of the evacuation site and so on. Each region in Indonesia has already a Disaster Management Agency which is expected to be able to move synergistically with the community and various aid agencies that come from within and outside the country when dealing with disasters.

Both the earthquake in Mamuju, and the floods in South Kalimantan, still caused casualties. It seems that even though the country is ready in infrastructure, the Indonesian people are still not fully aware and trained to face disasters that have never been known when they will occur. It is everyone's responsibility to build that awareness. Hopefully, what happened in early 2021 will be a reminder for all Indonesian citizens to be more vigilant and ready to face disasters, whatever they may be.

Musamus is a nest of a unique type of termite which lives in Merauke, Papua. Its name is Nasutitermes triodiae, a type of blind subterranean termite that only exists in Merauke, Papua and northern Australia. The subterranean termites are 5 millimeters in size which live in groups led by a termite queen and eat plants. In Merauke, the place where these subterranean termites make a home becomes an attractive tourism destination. When visiting the 1000 Musamus  in Merauke, you can see how strong the home made by termites is. The location of this tourism destination is in Kampung Selor 2, Kurik district, Merauke. The location is inside the Wasur National Park area. To arrive there, it takes about 2 hours from Merauke city.

When arriving at this 1000 Musamus tourism attraction, you will feel amazed by what you see. There are various Musamus which reach the height of 5 meters with a diameter of more than 2 meters and the size is various above the ground surface. The termite home has conical shape with the bottom supported by supporting poles which look like sheets or the outer shape of a star fruit. The surface texture of Musamus is squiggly and reddish brown like the color of the ground where it is located. When you look into it, you will find a very complicated room of hallways. These hallways function as a living space and a ventilation cavity which keep the temperature stable inside Musamus in order to keep it warm. It is the existence of these hallways that makes the nest safe for termite colonies because they will be protected from extreme temperature changes, even from forest fire.

Musamus is formed from the basic materials of dry grass, soil and the termite's saliva. These termites build their palace solidly and strongly, even it is able to withstand the weight of an adult human. For Merauke people, Musamus has its own philosophical meaning. Like Musamus termites, they work diligently without talking much and the result is visible in the form of Musamus' palace towering into the sky splendidly. Likewise, what the people of Merauke believe that by keeping working without complaining much and without destroying nature, we will see a magnificent result.

Ambassador Andri Hadi hands over Letters of Credentials to the King of Belgium, Philippe 

Indonesian Ambassador to Belgium Andri Hadi handed over letters of credentials to King of Belgium, Philippe in Brussels on Wednesday (13/1) by following the health protocols to prevent the transmission of Covid-19. While meeting the King, Ambassador Andri conveyed the respectful greetings of President Joko Widodo (Jokowi) to King Philippe, who had met during the visit of the Indonesian President to Belgium in 2016. The meeting at that time was impressed for President Joko Widodo. Therefore, he invited King Philippe to visit Indonesia, if the Covid-19 pandemic condition has been better.

In a statement of the Indonesian Embassy in Brussels on Thursday (14/1), Ambassador Andri stated that as a country with a population of around 270 million, Indonesia faces several challenges in dealing with the Covid-19 pandemic. However, with the vaccine, it is expected that Indonesia will be able to manage the Covid-19 pandemic. To King Philippe, Ambassador Andri also informed that Indonesia has started a Covid-19 vaccination program, with the first injection given to President Joko Widodo on Wednesday (13/1).

King Philippe expressed his condolences and sympathy of the government and the people of Belgium for the Sriwijaya airplane accident that occurred last week. In a response to the statement, Ambassador Andri explained that the plane's black box had been found for further investigation to find out the cause of the accident. Moreover, Ambassador Andri also conveyed several bilateral issues, such as cooperation in countering terrorism and palm oil. 

To King Philippe, Ambassador Andri explained that Indonesian palm oil is a sustainable palm oil product which is strictly regulated and has both national (ISPO) and international (RSPO) certification. King Philippe and Ambassador Andri Hadi agreed for the need of an immediate settlement of Agreement negotiations namely Indonesia-European Union (I-EU CEPA) Comprehensive Economic Partnership in order to optimize the huge potential of both countries. 

During the 30-minute meeting, Ambassador Andri Hadi provided an interesting book on the history of Indonesia's independence struggle entitled "Revolusi" which was written by a historian who is also a leading archaeologist in Belgium, David Van Reybrouck. King Philippe appreciated for giving of the book. Moreover, Ambassador Andri Hadi arrived in Belgium on November 11, 2020. Besides serving as the Indonesian Ambassador to Belgium, Ambassador Andri is also entrusted to be Indonesian Ambassador to Luxembourg, the European Union and the World Customs Organization.

Covid-19 Pandemic changes the order of people's lives, including in the world of education. Online education services are in demand during the corona pandemic. Earlier this year, two Indonesian edutech startups also won funding. Indonesian education startups: Titik Pintar and Zenius received fresh funds in early 2021. Titik Pintar obtained investment from the Indonesia Women Empowerment Fund (IWEF), while funding to Zenius was led by OpenSpace Ventures and Alpha JWC Ventures. This is the first time for Titik Pintar to obtain institutional investment from IWEF. Previously, this startup received grants from the Dutch government, as well as investments from individual investors in Indonesia and abroad.

Titik Pintar provides an EduTainment ecosystem, including customized self-learning services and remote micro lessons from teachers. The material is in Indonesian and English. Lessons and videos are made directly by the teacher on the SahabatPintar.id website. Thereby, teachers can get additional income. Meanwhile, children and parents can independently organize the learning experience and content needed. Currently, Titik Pintar has more than 15 thousand users.

Another educational startup, Zenius also received funding from OpenSpace Ventures and Alpha JWC Ventures. The fresh funds will be used to develop services and applications. Online learning services like Zenius are in demand during the corona pandemic. This has driven the company's revenue to grow 70% year on year / yoy more during the second semester of 2020. The number of users also grew more than 10 times during March to December 2020. Meanwhile, the average number of users in each class is 400 students.