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S. Sulawesi, Thailand to establish sister cities
The Thai government and the South Sulawesi provincial administration are seeking cooperation in various sectors, including the establishment of a sister-city relationship between the Thai city of Makasan and the South Sulawesi provincial capital of Makassar
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The Thai government and the South Sulawesi provincial administration are seeking cooperation in various sectors, including the establishment of a sister-city relationship between the Thai city of Makasan and the South Sulawesi provincial capital of Makassar.
The idea emerged during a meeting between the Thai Ambassador to Indonesia, Akrasid Amatayakul, and South Sulawesi Governor Syahrul Yasin Limpo held in Makassar on Monday.
Speaking after the meeting, Governor Syahrul said the relationship between South Sulawesi and Thailand was open, especially since the two regions share a long cultural and historic relation.
"Makassar people have been coming to Thailand for hundreds of years, and there is even a city named Makasan in Thailand, where Makassar descendants reside," he said.
This connection, he said, pushed both parties to devise the plan to link Makasan and Makassar as sister cities.
"With this establishment, hopefully we will be able to draw the Thailand-South Sulawesi relationship even closer, thus opening up more opportunities for cooperation," he said.
Akrasid, accompanied by his wife Supachari Amatayakul, said his visit to South Sulawesi intended to strengthen cooperation between the provinces.
During the visit, which commenced Thursday, Akrasid also had a meeting with Makassar Mayor Andi Herry Iskandar, visited a number of sites and made a commitment of unity with Makassar Hasanuddin University.
"We see potential in the agriculture, fishery and tourism sectors in South Sulawesi," he said.
He said a Thai company had expressed interest in the fishery sector in South Sulawesi, and intended to build a fish processing factory in which provincial fishermen would be the main suppliers for Thai raw materials.
Syahrul said his administration had also offered Thailand one of the province's main fish production centers as a fishery city, where the Thai processing industry would be built.
"So, they will not just buy the raw materials from us but also build the industry and prepare the technology. That way we will no longer export raw materials but processed ones instead, thus creating an added value to the commodity," Syahrul said.
One other local product on offer for the bilateral cooperation is seaweed. With a coastline extending 1,900 kilometers, South Sulawesi has been Indonesia's biggest production center for the abundant commodity.
