RI, KENYA PROMOTE COOPERATION AMONG DEVELOPING NATIONS TO ADDRESS CRISIS

Jakarta, Dec 3 (ANTARA) - Indonesia and Kenya have agreed to step up cooperation among developing countries in addressing the current global financial crisis, a minister said.

The two countries also discussed the possibility of cooperation to enhance people-to-people contact and to organize anti-terrorism training, Indonesian Foreign Minister Hassan Wirayuda said following a meeting with his Kenyan counterpart, Moses Masika Wetang'ula, here on Wednesday.

The discussion also touched on the possibility of cooperation between the Education and Training Center of the Indonesian Foreign Ministry and the Foreign Service Institute of Kenya (FSIK) and Kenya's wish to send its English teachers to Indonesia, Wirayuda said.

On Tuesday and Wednesday, the two countries held the first meeting of their joint commission here as a follow-up to the signing of a memorandum of understanding (MoU) on establishing the joint commission.

The foreign ministers of the two countries signed the MoU in Nairobi, Kenya, on June 19, 2008.

Under the MoU, the two nations agreed to enhance bilateral relations in the fields of security, general election system, trade, industry, agriculture, fisheries, energy, mineral management, transportation, communication, and tourism, among others.

To enhance the bilateral cooperation, the Kenyan government has decided to open its diplomatic representative office here.

On Thursday, the Kenyan delegation is scheduled to visit Bandung to see for themselves strategic industries, including state aircraft manufacturer PT Dirgantara Indonesia and state-owned military equipment manufacturer PT PINDAD. ***8***