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Susi seeks to deepen cooperation in fisheries with JICA
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Maritime Affairs and Fisheries Minister Susi Pudjiastuti on her paddle board. (Twitter/File)
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aritime Affairs and Fisheries Minister Susi Pudjiastuti is leading negotiations in Japan to increase cooperation in the fisheries sector.
"We are here to follow up Prime Minister Shinzo Abe's pledge for cooperation in the fisheries sector. We're also here to offer a number of other initiatives that will benefit both parties," Susi said in a statement on Tuesday.
The minister is currently on a five-day trip to Japan to follow up on previous Japanese commitments made during Abe's visit to Indonesia earlier in January, where both partners agreed to increase cooperation in several sectors including the maritime sector and the fisheries sector.
Susi is also slated to meet with Japan's minister for agriculture, forestry and fisheries and the defense minister, among others.
During the first day of her visit, Susi met with Shinichi Kitaoka, the president of the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA), for a 40-minute closed-door meeting about the similarities of maritime issues confronting both nations.
She asked for JICA's support in developing maritime infrastructure for a number of integrated marine and fisheries centers across the archipelago's outermost islands such as Sabang in Aceh, Natuna in Riau Islands and Morotai in North Maluku.
Susi said she was convinced that the move to modernize Indonesia's fisheries industry would provide ample opportunity for her ministry and JICA to cooperate.
"The fisheries sector does not need big-money investments. To erect [an aquaculture] facility with a 30-ton production capacity only requires around Rp 10 billion to Rp 30 billion [US$750,000 to $2.2 million] in investment," she said.
Susi also proposed a capacity-building initiative to improve quality assurance and product safety standards for its in-house laboratory, part of an effort to upgrade the facility to become a World Organization for Animal Health reference laboratory.
"We are offering JICA the opportunity to build up the Indonesian fisheries industry. Japan is Indonesia's largest market for seafood. Japan needs a steady supply of seafood and that's the gap we're trying to fill," she said.(jun)
