Despite the ongoing
communal tensions in Myanmar, both Indonesia and Myanmar have reiterated their
bilateral commitment to boost efforts in achieving the target of US$1 billion
in trade volume by 2016.
“We are able to review the state of our economic relations
and trade, especially our efforts to achieve $1 billion trade value by 2016, as
well as our promotion of investment and progress in capacity building,”
Indonesian Foreign Minister Marty Natalegawa told media after the third meeting
of the joint commission for bilateral cooperation between the two countries on
Wednesday.
The meeting serves as an important follow up after the
recent state visit of President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono to Naypyitaw, the
capital of Myanmar on April 23-24.
As of last year, Indonesia and Myanmar’s bilateral
trade had reached $465 million, increasing 7.98 per cent from $430.7 million in
2011. Last year, Indonesia recorded cumulative investment values worth $241.5
million, boosted by the expansion of Indonesian businesses in Myanmar.
“Within three years, we are fully committed to achieve
the $1 billion trade volume target,” said Marty.
The enhancement of cooperation includes various
sectors, such as agriculture, energy, technology, preventing and combating
transnational organised crime, capacity building partnerships, investment and
bilateral trade for both countries’ mutual benefit.
Marty praised Myanmar’s positive development, which
was both transformative and fundamental, over the past year.
“Of course, every development leaves challenges,
including community relations and reconcilliation issues, as we have gone
through in the past. I have expressed my strong support to Myanmar in
overcoming those challenges,” emphasised Marty.
Myanmar Foreign Affairs Minister Wunna Maung Lwin
said: “among others, we also discussed recent development with respect to the
reform and national reconcilliation process, including Myanmar’s recent
approach to prevent the recurrence of communal violence, as well as to achieve
peaceful solutions.”
Throughout the past years, Indonesia has continuously
displayed its commitment to providing humanitarian assistance through the works
of the Indonesian Red Cross (PMI) and Aksi Cepat Tanggap (ACT Care for
Humanity).
“Around three weeks ago, we handed over $1 million in
financial assistance to build three schools equipped with multipurpose halls,”
Indonesian Ambassador to Myanmar Sebastianus Sumarsono said on the sidelines of
Wednesday’s meeting. The schools are to be built in Rakhine state, a site of
communal conflict.
Sebastianus acknowledged that education and settlement
improvements were among the most urgent needs of conflict-prone Myanmar. He
said that Indonesia had also provided $1 million in financial assistance for
the construction of a three-story hospital equipped with a tsunami protection
shelter.
Agnes Winarti
The Jakarta Post
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