Indonesia Reaffirms Commitment to Enhancing Cooperation with African Nations
Jakarta, The Gulf Observer: The Indonesian Foreign Ministry has reiterated the government’s dedication to strengthening cooperation with African nations, particularly in the health and energy sectors, in the lead-up to the 2nd Indonesia-Africa Forum (IAF). Siti Nugraha Mauludiah, the ministry’s Director General of Information and Public Diplomacy, highlighted this commitment in a statement from her office on Sunday.
“Indonesia is committed to enhancing development cooperation with African countries as an equal and reliable partner,” Mauludiah stated. She emphasized Indonesia’s proactive role in international development cooperation, particularly among developing nations, including those in Africa.
Over the past decade, Indonesia has executed around 60 South-South and Triangular Cooperation (KSST) programs, benefiting approximately 500 participants from the African region. These initiatives span a wide range of sectors, including agriculture, fisheries and maritime affairs, health, energy, good governance, micro, small, and medium enterprises (MSMEs), infrastructure development, disaster risk management, women’s empowerment, and trade and investment.
Mauludiah noted that such efforts have bolstered Indonesia’s international standing as a newly recognized donor country. “Currently, Indonesia is gaining more international recognition as a reliable development partner for developing countries, a reliable southern provider,” she remarked.
This commitment is further demonstrated through the establishment of the International Development Cooperation Fund (LDKPI), also known as Indonesia AID, in 2019. This one-stop institution is responsible for distributing development assistance to partner countries.
Since its inception, Indonesia’s development cooperation has reached 23 of the 54 countries in Africa, representing approximately 42 percent of the continent. The focus has been on critical areas such as food security, health, and energy.
In the food security sector, Indonesia has contributed to procuring food supplies to mitigate the effects of drought in Kenya, Ethiopia, and Madagascar. Additionally, the country has supported the revitalization of agricultural training centers in Gambia and Tanzania.
In the health sector, Indonesia has donated medicines and medical devices, produced by state-owned pharmaceutical company PT Kimia Farma, to Mozambique and Zimbabwe. In 2023, Indonesia distributed 1,580,000 doses of the Pentavalent Vaccine, produced by PT Bio Farma, to Nigeria in two stages.
In the energy sector, Indonesia has provided training to enhance solar energy capacity in Namibia, Mozambique, Sudan, Senegal, and Tanzania.
The upcoming 2nd Indonesia-Africa Forum (IAF), scheduled for September 1-3, 2024, will be held under the theme “Bandung Spirit for Africa’s 2063 Agenda.” The forum aims to solidify concrete relations between Indonesia and Africa, fostering shared prosperity and mutual development.
