T

he Dutch government has committed to boosting its relationship with Indonesia, noting that economic, political and people-to-people contacts should be strengthened further, a minister says.

“Indonesia is a growing economic power in the region. We have historical ties but our relationship has not developed by itself. We need to invest more in people-to-people contacts, political, economic and cultural ties,” visiting Dutch Foreign Minister Frans Timmermans said in Jakarta on Wednesday.

The new push to improve bilateral ties will be marked by a series of visits by high-level Dutch officials.

Beginning with the foreign minister’s visit this week, and building throughout 2013 with other ministerial visits, the series will culminate in a visit by Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte, accompanied by a trade delegation, at the end of this year.

Timmermans is scheduled to meet his Indonesian counterpart Marty Natalegawa on Thursday to discuss international development and to identify areas where the already strong and diverse relationship between the two countries can be strengthened further.

“There is more to offer in our relationship,” Timmermans added.

Development cooperation between Indonesia and the Netherlands has been focused on advancing the education sector, good governance, providing clean water and sanitation and developing the eastern part of Indonesia.

During his two-day visit, Timmermans had a chance to meet with Indonesian students who studied in the Netherlands. There are 1.200 Indonesian currently attending universities across the Netherlands and 250 cooperative arrangements have been established among various education institutions in both countries.

The Dutch government also provided humanitarian and development assistance to a number disaster-stricken regions in Indonesia, including Aceh and Nias following the tsunami, and Yogyakarta and Klaten following the earthquake.

The Netherlands is one of Indonesia’s most important trade partners in Europe.

Amid a European weakening economy, trade between the two countries in between January and September 2012 reached US$3.314 billion, while efforts are currently underway to further boost that figure.

The Port of Rotterdam and Schiphol Airport have been the main entry points for Indonesian products into the European Union.

Similarly, Dutch companies have seen Indonesia as their gateway to the larger ASEAN market, which is home to more than 500 million people.

During his first day in Jakarta on Wednesday, Timmermans met with Jakarta Deputy Governor Basuki “Ahok” Tjahaja Purnama to discuss water management and Jakarta’s heritage issues.