MFA Press Statement: Visit by Senior Minister of State, Ministry of Defence and Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Dr Mohamad Maliki Osman to Pekanbaru and Jambi City, the Republic of Indonesia, 25 to 28 July 2017

                Senior Minister of State (SMS), Ministry of Defence and Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Dr Mohamad Maliki Osman visited Pekanbaru in Riau Province from 25 to 26 July 2017, and Jambi City in Jambi Province from 27 to 28 July 2017.

                In Pekanbaru, SMS Maliki met Riau Governor Arsyadjuliandi Rachman.  SMS Maliki and Governor Arsyadjuliandi reaffirmed the strong ties between Singapore and Riau, and discussed ways to enhance cooperation in areas such as tourism, investments and skills training.  SMS Maliki also received a briefing on the Riau Haze Task Force, and expressed his appreciation for efforts by the Indonesian Government and Riau Province to combat the haze.  SMS Maliki reaffirmed Singapore’s commitment to work together with Indonesia on haze and other environmental issues of mutual interest.  SMS Maliki also met Pekanbaru Mayor Firdaus and members from Riau’s Regional House of Representatives.  They exchanged views on developments in Singapore and Indonesia.  SMS Maliki also engaged students and teachers from the University of Riau and the Pondok Modern Darussalam Gontor Putri 7, an Islamic boarding school in Kampar Regency.  They discussed the importance of embracing racial and cultural diversity, and fostering more exchanges between youths from Singapore and Indonesia. 

                In Jambi City, SMS Maliki met Jambi Vice-Governor Fachrori Umar, Jambi City Mayor Syarif Fasha and Vice-Mayor Abdullah Sani, and received a briefing on the “100 Smart City Movement” in Indonesia.  They discussed areas for potential cooperation, such as capacity building and smart city collaboration, and ways to deepen people-to-people exchanges between Singapore and Jambi.  SMS Maliki recalled that Singapore had worked well with Jambi under the Singapore-Jambi MOU on Environmental Cooperation from 2007 to 2011, and said that Singapore would be happy to resume collaboration on similar projects in future.  SMS Maliki also visited the Indonesia Climate Change Trust Fund (ICCTF)’s peatland restoration and sustainable livelihood projects in Tanjung Jabung Timur Regency.

                SMS Maliki met local business personalities from Riau and Jambi.  They discussed ways to deepen economic cooperation between Singapore and their respective provinces.

                SMS Maliki also met Singapore Cooperation Programme (SCP) alumni from Jambi and students from Jambi University at a reception hosted by the Singapore Consulate in Medan to commemorate the 50^th anniversary of bilateral relations between Singapore and Indonesia.

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MINISTRY OF FOREIGN AFFAIRS
SINGAPORE
28 JULY 2017