The Indonesian government has called on Malaysia to strengthen cooperation in establishing food security in ASEAN to show the world the effectiveness of regional cooperation in helping prevent food crises.
The initiative was discussed by Vice President Boediono and Malaysian Deputy Prime Minister Muhyiddin Yassin in a bilateral meeting at the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) headquarters in Rome on Wednesday afternoon (Wednesday night in Jakarta).
The meeting was held on the sideline of the three-day World Summit on Food Security, which ended Wednesday and was attended by 160 countries.
Malaysia has invited Indonesia to jointly develop investment in the agricultural sector, Boediono said, adding that Indonesia with its vast agricultural area, would become an investment destination for Malaysia.
He added that cooperation with other countries was also possible, including Middle Eastern partners who had disclosed their willingness to invest in Indonesia's agricultural sector.
"Indonesia offers its vast agricultural areas, while Malaysia can offer its technology and management expertise," he said.
Boediono added Malaysia had not attained self-sufficiency in food production, and had to import 50 percent of its food needs, indicating a strong economic opportunity for Indonesia.
Agriculture Minister Suswono, who accompanied Boediono at the summit, will hold a bilateral meeting with his Malaysian counterpart to work out preparations for the planned cooperation.
Boediono said Malaysia and Indonesia could also cooperate on the marketing of palm oil, especially since the combined palm oil production from both countries accounted for 80 percent of world supply.
The strengthening of such marketing cooperation is urgently needed to prevent consumer countries from controlling or determining market prices, as is currently happening, he said.
During the meeting, both Boediono and Muhyiddin agreed that the participation of young leaders in bilateral meetings between the two countries would enable them to become good leaders in the future.
The two leaders also agreed to follow up the results of the recent visit by President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono to Malaysia.
Muhyiddin expressed his appreciation the President's decision to make Malaysia the destination for his first state visit after being sworn in for a second term.
Boediono said despite disputes between the two neighboring countries, their leaders still wanted to settle problems amicably.
Addressing the issue of Indonesian migrant workers in Malaysia, he underlined the importance of coming to a mutually agreeable settlement to prevent any hiccups in bilateral relations.
Muhyiddin was quoted as saying that Malaysia appreciated and acknowledged the important role Indonesian migrant workers played in his country's economic activities.
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