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Jakarta Post

Strong attendance expected at first Indian Ocean summit

Liza Yosephine (The Jakarta Post)
Jakarta
Fri, March 3, 2017

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Strong attendance expected at first Indian Ocean summit Indonesian Foreign Minister Retno LP Marsudi (left) hands an official invitation for the upcoming Indian Ocean Rim Association (IORA) Leaders' Summit to South African President Jacob Zuma (center) in Cape Town, South Africa in this recent photo. (Foreign Affairs Ministry/file)

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s many as 16 leaders from the 21-member Indian Ocean Rim Association (IORA) have confirmed their plan to attend the organization's first summit in Jakarta next week, a top diplomat has said. 

Foreign Minister Retno LP Marsudi on Thursday said the summit is set to boost cooperation through the IORA at a governance level, which would also involve seven dialogue partners. 

The leaders' meeting on Tuesday would be proceeded by a senior official's meeting on Sunday and a ministerial meeting on Monday. 

"Among the 16 leaders are the South African president [Jacob Zuma], the Malaysian prime minister [Najib Razak], the Australian prime minister [Malcolm Turnbull] and the Indian vice president [Mohammad Hamid Ansari]. Also, Sri Lanka would attend at the leader's level. Bangladesh too at the leader's level," Retno told reporters. 

A business forum on the sidelines is set to be attended by at least 477 participants, she added. 

As incumbent IORA chair since 2015, Indonesia is set to host the organization's first summit since its establishment in 1997. 

President Joko "Jokowi" Widodo would co-chair the summit with the prior chairs, Australian Prime Minister Turnbull, and South African President Zuma, set to take over chairmanship later this year. 

The summit is set to produce three main documents, namely the IORA Concord at the leaders’ level, a ministerial Plan of Action for the next four years and a declaration on preventing and countering terrorism.

An association that convenes countries bounding the Indian Ocean, IORA focuses on developing sustainable economies by ensuring maritime safety and security cooperation among its members. (evi)

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