President Jokowi To Visit Singapore

Jakarta (Antara Bali) -- Indonesian President Joko "Jokowi" Widodo will conduct a state visit to Singapore on July 28 and 29.

According to a press release made available to Antara here on Monday, Coordinating Minister for Economic Affairs Sofjan Djalil, Foreign Affairs Minister Retno Marsudi, Administrative and Bureaucratic Reform Minister Yuddy Chrisnandy, and Sports and Youth Affairs Minister Imam Nahrawi will be part of President Jokowi's entourage.

Spokesperson for the Foreign Affairs Ministry Arrmanatha Nasir said that during the visit, they will be focused on increasing economic cooperation between two countries.

At present, Singapore is one of Indonesia's chief partners in the sectors of trade, investment and tourism.

In 2014, trade between Indonesia and Singapore amounted to US$41.99 billion, the second largest after that with China.

In the investment sector, Singapore ranked first in the last five years, with as many as 2,056 projects worth US$5.8 billion last year.

In the same period, Singaporeans constituted the largest section of foreign tourists in Indonesia, with 1,519,223 people. This was a 10.12 percent rise from that recorded in 2013.

During his visit, President Jokowi is scheduled to meet Singaporean President Tony Tan Keng Yam and Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong. He will also attend a business conference in which more than 150 CEOs of big Singapore-based companies will participate.

Moreover, besides bilateral issues, President Jokowi will also use the opportunity of the visit to discuss ASEAN-related affairs ahead of the regional economic integration in 2015.

Indonesia believes that people living in the ASEAN region, including migrant workers, must benefit directly from the ASEAN Economic Community 2015.

With regard to this idea, Indonesia has been working towards establishing a legally binding instrument to protect migrant workers in the ASEAN region.

On the last day of his visit, Jokowi is slated to inaugurate a new species of orchid that will be named after Indonesian First Lady Iriana Joko Widodo. (WDY)