Indonesia Echoes the Spirit of Nawa Cita at IORA Leaders

Jakarta, IORA - The Leaders of the Indian Ocean Rim Association (IORA) Member States will meet in Jakarta from 5 to 7 March 2017 to attend the IORA Leader's Summit which is the first summit in the history of the establishment of the cooperation of states in the Indian Ocean region since 1997. The Summit is an initiative of Indonesia's Chairmanship for the period of 2015-2017. As many as 16 leaders, including President Joko Widodo, are slated to attend the Summit, which will also be the commemoration of the 20th Anniversary of IORA cooperation. Director General for Asia, Pacific and Africa of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Indonesia, Ambassador Desra Percaya, conveyed the preparation for the IORA Leader's Summit in a press briefing at the Foreign Ministry Office, Wednesday (2/3). Also present at the press briefing were Foreign Ministry spokesman Arrmanatha Nasir and Director of Information and Media of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs Siti Sofia Sudarma. The Director General explained that through the summit held under the theme “Strengthening Maritime Cooperation for a Peaceful, Stable and Prosperous Indian Ocean”, Indonesia wants to bring the spirit of Nawa Cita (Nine Agenda), which is the priority agenda of President Joko Widodo’s administration. "Indonesia invites leaders of IORA to realize a peaceful, stable and prosperous Indian Ocean region," he added. In addition to cooperation among countries, Indonesia wants agreements and international law, including UNCLOS, to be respected as social norms. The IORA Leader's Summit will agree on a concord. Indonesia is considering the need to encourage IORA to have a significant impact for the people. IORA should also be able to face the challenges of the future. To that end, it needs to be anticipated as early as possible to allow countries in the region to continue to maintain and improve the Indian Ocean region as a well-managed region. Moreover, according to the Director General, IORA is the only cooperation in the Indian Ocean region. Hence, Indonesia sees the need to take the initiative. IORA also represents one-third of the world's population, which amounted to 2.7 billion. Furthermore, the Indian Ocean is a strategic region which represents 70 percent of world transport lines with an abundance of natural resources. The Leader's Summit will consist of Senior Officials Meeting (SOM), Council of Ministers’ Meeting (COMM) and the Leaders’ Summit. President Joko Widodo is slated to chair the Leaders’ Summit session along with Prime Minister of Australia (as the previous Chair of IORA) and President of South Africa (as the next Chair of IORA). In addition, President Joko Widodo is also scheduled to deliver a speech in the Business Summit. Desra explained that the IORA Action Plan will be agreed in the COMM, which contains several planned activities over the next 4 years, which include maritime, women's empowerment and culture. The Ministers will also agree on a declaration on the prevention and fight against terrorism and extreme violence. At the press briefing, Director of information and media also expressed journalists’ enthusiasm who will cover the summit. As of now, 211 journalists have registered to cover the IORA meetings. "We suggest the journalists to immediately register online which is to be closed this afternoon (Thursday, 03.02)," she concluded. Source: Kemlu.go.id (Irvina Falah/MUR)