By Mohd Iswandi Kasan Anuar
JAKARTA, April 20 (Bernama) – Deputy Prime Minister Datuk Seri Dr Ahmad Zahid Hamidi arrived in Indonesia today for a three-day official visit aimed at boosting bilateral ties between the neighbouring countries in among others education, food security, rural development and disaster management.
He and his delegation landed at Soekarno-Hatta International Airport at 7.01 pm local time (8.01 pm Malaysian time).
Ahmad Zahid, who is also Minister of Rural and Regional Development, was welcomed by Indonesia’s Minister of Religious Affairs, Nasaruddin Omar; Malaysian Ambassador to Indonesia, Datuk Syed Mohamad Hasrin Tengku Hussin; and Malaysia’s Permanent Representative to ASEAN, Datin Sarah Al Bakri Devadason.
“This visit is expected to further strengthen relations between Malaysia and Indonesia, as well as enhance strategic cooperation,” Syed Mohamad Hasrin told Malaysian media.
During the visit, Ahmad Zahid is scheduled to pay a courtesy call on Indonesia’s Vice President, Gibran Rakabuming Raka, and discuss as well as explore collaborative opportunities, including in Technical and Vocational Education and Training (TVET).
He is also set to witness the exchange of three Letters of Intent, two concerning TVET cooperation between Universiti Kuala Lumpur (UniKL) and the regional governments of Jakarta and West Sumatra, and another between Education Malaysia Global Services (EMGS) and the Government of West Sumatra.
Regional disaster preparedness is also expected to be on the agenda, with scheduled visits to Indonesia’s National Agency for Disaster Management (BNPB) and the ASEAN Coordinating Centre for Humanitarian Assistance (AHA Centre).
“This is quite a special visit as Malaysia is currently chairing ASEAN, which gives us the opportunity to receive updates on the involvement of these centres in recent natural disasters, including in Myanmar,” said Syed Mohamad Hasrin.
Another potential area for collaboration is food security, where both nations could explore joint efforts to tackle common challenges.
“Food security is a top priority for Indonesian President Prabowo Subianto, and it is also high on Malaysia’s agenda. If there are opportunities to collaborate, they will certainly be explored together,” Syed Mohamad Hasrin added.
In 2024, Indonesia was Malaysia’s sixth largest global trading partner and second largest among ASEAN member countries.
Bilateral trade in 2024 was recorded at RM116.29 billion (US$25.5 billion), a 4.5 per cent increase from RM111.21 billion (US$24.39 billion) in 2023.
-- BERNAMA
BERNAMA provides up-to-date authentic and comprehensive news and information which are disseminated via BERNAMA Wires; www.bernama.com; BERNAMA TV on Astro 502, unifi TV 631 and MYTV 121 channels and BERNAMA Radio on FM93.9 (Klang Valley), FM107.5 (Johor Bahru), FM107.9 (Kota Kinabalu) and FM100.9 (Kuching) frequencies.
Follow us on social media :
Facebook : @bernamaofficial, @bernamatv, @bernamaradio
Twitter : @bernama.com, @BernamaTV, @bernamaradio
Instagram : @bernamaofficial, @bernamatvofficial, @bernamaradioofficial
TikTok : @bernamaofficial
