Jakarta (Antara Bali) - President Joko "Jokowi" Widodo encouraged all Indonesian diplomats posted overseas to push for economic diplomacy, so that greater benefits of state diplomacy can be reaped by the people.
President Jokowi remarked during the opening event of the Indonesian Representatives' Work Meeting at the Pancasila building, Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MOFA) here on Monday.
"Based on my experiences as a governor and mayor for almost nine years, I conclude that almost 90 percent mission of the representatives of most developed countries is economic diplomacy," President Jokowi remarked.
The meeting is being organized on April 2-5, 2015, and 132 Indonesian ambassadors, consul generals, consuls, and permanent representatives stationed overseas are attending the meeting.
Jokowi recollected that during his term as Jakarta governor when he had started the Mass Rapid Transportation (MRT) project, several ambassadors and foreign representatives visited him to lend cooperation in providing infrastructure support.
"An example is the MRT project. What machines, what trains, do you want to use? They asked me, almost every day whenever the foreign representatives came to see me and offered business cooperation," he said.
Therefore, Jokowi highlighted the importance of enhancing Indonesia's overseas economic diplomacy.
Increasing economic diplomacy was included as one of the four focus areas of Indonesia's diplomacy during the next five years, along with safeguarding the Indonesian territory, protecting Indonesian nationals and legal entities overseas, and strengthening Indonesia's role in the global arena.
Besides underlining the focus areas of Indonesia's diplomacy, Minister of Foreign Affairs Retno Marsudi stated in her remarks that Indonesian diplomats will work hard to lobby for the protection of national interests and stand for the citizens and legal entities all over the world.
The opening meeting was also attended by Coordinating Minister for Political, Legal and Security Affairs Tedjo Edhi Purdijatno, Coordinating Minister for Maritime Affairs Indroyono Soesilo, Coordinating Minister of Human Development and Culture Puan Maharani, Chairman of the People's Representative Council Setya Novanto, Chairman of Commission I, and Cabinet Secretary Andi Widjayanto. (WDY)
