VOI - Voice of Indonesia | RRI - Radio Republik Indonesia

President Joko Widodo at the groundbreaking of the central general hospital (RSUP) in IKN Nusantara, East Kalimantan, on Wednesday (December 20, 2023). (ANTARA/Yashinta Difa/rst) - 

Voinews, Jakarta - Indonesian President Joko Widodo has necessitated that all buildings in the new capital city (IKN) Nusantara should comply with the green building approach to support the principles of environment-friendly green infrastructure in IKN's development.

"I remind all developers in IKN to build with a green principle. The environment must be green along with a green area," Jokowi noted in his speech at the groundbreaking of the central general hospital (RSUP) in IKN on Wednesday.

In order to support the greening effort, the president is also scheduled to conduct tree planting activity during his visit to several locations, including the Axis of Nationality area and the Forest and Land Rehabilitation Location for the Central Government Core Area (KIPP).

"Today, we will carry out reforestation, such as planting endemic trees, to make IKN a green capital city that cannot be found in other countries," Jokowi remarked.

Earlier, the Directorate General of Human Settlements of the Public Works and Public Housing (PUPR) Ministry stated that the principles of green buildings (BGH) and smart buildings (BGC) were applied to government building construction projects in IKN.

The ministry also continues to increase the implementation of green infrastructure in Indonesia that plays an important role in maintaining the physical aspects of the environment and biocapacity in development.

In this way, the government is able to preserve the natural system while still paying attention to the social, cultural, and economic aspects that improve the quality of life of the community.

Built in stages until 2045 with the concept of the Future Smart Forest City of Indonesia, IKN will showcase the nation's superiority in realizing a smart city that is modern and sustainable in line with international standards//ANT-VOI

FILE PHOTO: Japan’s incoming Economy, Trade and Industry Minister Ken Saito arrives at Prime Minister Fumio Kishida's official residence in Tokyo, Japan December 14, 2023. REUTERS/Issei Kato/File Photo - 

TOKYO : Japan's new industry minister on Wednesday pledged to continue supporting efforts to revitalise the country's chip manufacturing base, which have included subsidies for Taiwanese chipmaker TSMC and foundry venture Rapidus.

"The speed of policymaking and execution, which could be called the world's fastest, has led to concrete results beginning with the decision on the location for TSMC," industry minister Ken Saito told reporters.

"It is my job to continue and expand upon the sense of speed that former minister Nishimura has built up," Saito said, referring to his predecessor Yasutoshi Nishimura.

Japanese premier Fumio Kishida last week appointed Saito to lead the powerful Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry (METI) after purging his cabinet to contain the damage from a financial scandal.

The government's efforts to regain Japan's faded chip glory include financial support for Rapidus, which is led by chip industry veterans and aims to mass manufacture 2-nanometre logic chips.

TSMC, the world's leading contract chipmaker, views the Japanese government as easy to deal with and generous with subsidies and is considering further expansion in Japan beyond its first fab, Reuters has reported.

"Ongoing support for Rapidus will be necessary. Discussions with TSMC regarding next projects are also ongoing," Saito said.

"We will not blindly continue our support but strictly manage progress and the necessity of backing," he added//CNA-VOI

Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi attends a meeting at the Ittihadia presidential palace in Cairo on Nov 15, 2023. (File photo: AFP/Khaled Desouki) - 

SINGAPORE: Singapore’s President Tharman Shanmugaratnam has written to Egypt’s Abdel Fattah al-Sisi to congratulate him on his re-election as president, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MFA) said on Wednesday (Dec 20).

Mr Sisi took 89.6 per cent of the vote during Egypt’s Dec 10 to Dec 12 presidential election to win a third term in office.

“Please accept my congratulations on your re-election as president of the Arab Republic of Egypt,” Mr Tharman said in his letter.

“The strong mandate that you received is especially important in the midst of the conflicts in the region and the key role that Egypt plays in both coordinating humanitarian aid into Gaza and in the pursuit of peace.”

Mr Tharman noted that Singapore and Egypt enjoy a “warm and long-standing partnership” that is “underpinned by strong political, economic and people-to-people ties”.

He added that cooperation between the two countries continues to deepen and has expanded into areas like capacity building, civil aviation and tourism.

“I look forward to continuing to work with you to further enhance bilateral ties,” said Mr Tharman//CNA-VOI

FILE PHOTO: People stroll past Christmas lights and decorations at the outdoor Christmas market at Humboldt Forum in central Berlin, Germany, on Dec 11, 2023. (Photo: REUTERS/Lisi Niesner) - 

LONDON/MUNICH: Travel within Europe in the busy holiday season is exceeding 2022 levels, despite security warnings from authorities around Europe as consumers remain determined to enjoy holidays, prolonging the post-pandemic travel boom.

Christmas markets and popular tourist sites in cities such as Munich and Paris have been bustling lately, albeit with strong security presences, as holiday travel within the European Union and including Britain was set to climb 22 per cent above 2022 levels, according to travel data firm ForwardKeys.

The spike has been driven by continued post-pandemic demand, executives and analysts said, with some people only travelling to see their families for Christmas this year for the first time since the pandemic.

But security warnings remain in the back of tourists' minds. In late November, European security officials warned of a growing risk of attacks tied to the Israel-Hamas war, with the biggest threat from potential "lone wolf" assailants.

Two militant attacks in France and Belgium in October killed three people, and these two countries, Austria, Slovenia and Bosnia-Herzegovina have raised their terrorism threat alert levels. Italy has reimposed border controls with Slovenia, citing the risk of militants entering the country.

There was a slight spike in ticket cancellations over the Christmas period between Dec 21 and 31, ForwardKeys said, from 2.4 per cent to 3 per cent since Nov 24.

"Although this number is small, this could be an impact of the terrorism warning sent throughout Europe since the start of the recent conflict in Israel," said Juan Gomez, an analyst at ForwardKeys.

But tourists continued to swarm popular destinations, displaying an increased trust in the security apparatus in place across European hubs.

"I feel very safe and very conscious of the state of the world. And it's certainly something I think about every day, both conflicts in Europe, conflicts in the Middle East," said Gwen Fitzgerald, who visited a Christmas market in Munich this week from Boston.

"But I also really am desperate for joy at the same time."

Christmas arrivals to places such as Italy, Austria and Sweden have also grown by 25 per cent or more year-on-year.

Tourists said that, with the rise in warnings in recent years and the reinforced security around Europe tied to them, there was more of a sense of calm and they felt comfortable not calling off their travel plans.

"When we are here and we stay just one day in the downtown, we see a lot of police and security, we feel safe," said Danny Sanchez, a tourist from Villareal, Spain, visiting the Munich market//CNA-VOI