"I am happy that I was able to reciprocate Prime Minister Ruttes visit to Indonesia in 2013," Jokowi said.
The two countries signed the MoU at the end of the bilateral meeting. The MoU covers higher education, science and maritime cooperation.
At the bilateral meeting, the president was accompanied by Coordinating Minister for Economic Affairs Darmin Nasution, Foreign Minister Retno Marsudi, Cabinet Secretary Pramono Anung, Trade Minister Thomas Lembong, Chief of the Investment Coordinating Board (BKPM) Franky Sibarani and Indonesias Ambassador to the Netherlands I Gusti Agung Wesaka Puja.
The President expressed the hope that his visit to the Netherlands as part of his four-European nation tour will enhance relations between the two countries.
He said he found it difficult to find areas for further cooperation between the two nations, since Indonesia and the Netherlands already have intensive ties in almost all sectors.
"But this time I am looking forward to focusing on three priorities -- water management, maritime affairs and trade and investment," he said.
At the meeting, Jokowi said he was happy with the realization of infrastructure projects, particularly those related to water supply and sanitation, water for food and ecosystem, water governance, and water safety.
Indonesia is facing challenges when it comes to controlling floods and coastal abrasion, and ensuring clean water supply, he said.
The president expressed the hope that cooperation in water management should focus on addressing these three issues, particularly with regard to transfer of expertise and technology.
"I appreciate the effort to renew the MoU regarding water management, signed in 2015. The MoU will last for five years," he said.
He also praised the Netherlands for its cooperation in achieving the aims of the Jakarta Coastal Development Strategy (JCDS) and the National Capital Integrated Coastal Development (NCICD).
In the maritime sector, the president lauded the Dutch government for its interest to help Indonesia achieve its maritime axis vision. The vision was realized by developing maritime clusters including fisheries, ship development, infrastructure and marine resources.
"I invite Dutch companies in the maritime sector to participate in the development of deep seaports in the eastern parts of Indonesia," he said.
He further said the Netherlands is one of Indonesias main partners in the trade and investment fields. However, trade between the two countries declined to US$4.22 billion in 2015 from $4.89 billion in 2014.
Dutch investment in Indonesia also dropped to $1.31 billion in 2015 from $1.73 billion in 2014.
To support open and competitive Indonesian economy, the government has launched 11 deregulation packages containing economic reforms, a three-hour licensing service, one stop service at the BKPM and revision of the Negative Investment List, he said.
"I invite the Netherlands to participate in maritime infrastructure projects in Indonesia, including Sorong deep seaport and Makassar deep seaport," he said.(*)
Editor: Heru Purwanto
Copyright © ANTARA 2016
