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Europalia offers opportunities for economic cooperation
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he ongoing Europalia arts and cultural festival featuring Indonesian artists in Brussels, Belgium and other European countries could pave the way for Indonesia and Europe to explore economic opportunities, Coordinating Human Development and Culture Minister Puan Maharani said recently.
The festival will be held from October to January.
About 316 artists from Indonesia will be showcasing various attractions, including artworks, historical artifacts, tourism destinations, and readings of literary works, film screenings, and art performances as well as networking sessions involving people from both the government and business sectors. The troupe of artists will tour Belgium to England, France, Poland, Germany, the Netherlands and Austria.
Before officiating at the festival’s opening ceremony on Oct. 10 in Brussels, Indonesian Vice President Jusuf Kalla arranged a meeting with European Union (EU) Vice President Andrus Ansip to discuss economic opportunities between the EU and Indonesia.
Puan said Indonesia had agreed to organize the biennial international arts and cultural festival because of its attractiveness and good reputation. The government has spent approximately Rp 160 billion to fund the event.
Puan added that it could serve as a platform for Indonesia to promote itself as a major tourism destination.
She said that Indonesia could also promote its national brand through the artistic showcase featured at the Europalia festival.
“We hope that the festival would serve as a springboard for Indonesia to showcase the richness of its arts and culture to the world, particularly Europeans.”
