Jakarta, June 22 (ANTARA News) - Foreign Minister Retno Marsudi will attend the Third Ministerial Meeting of the Conference on Cooperation among East Asian Countries for Palestinian Development (CEAPAD) on 26-27 June 2018 in Bangkok, Thailand.
The meeting will be opened by Thai Prime Minister Prayuth Chan Ocha and attended by 11 foreign ministers from Brunei Darussalam, Indonesia, Japan, Malaysia, Egypt, Palestine, South Korea, Singapore, Vietnam, Jordan and Thailand.
"The meeting aims to improve coordination and effectiveness of aid to the Palestinians from the East Asian countries," Foreign Ministry`s director for Technical Cooperation M. Syarif Alatas told the press in Jakarta on Friday.
Initiated by Japan in 2013, CEAPAD serves as a forum for East Asian countries and international organisations to coordinate the sharing of experiences and knowledge, as well as the assistance in cooperation with Palestine in its ongoing development efforts. CEAPAD has contributed to the socio-economic development and capacity building of Palestine, in line with the Palestinian?s needs and East Asian countries? resources.
In this regard, the CEAPAD forum plays a useful role in creating an environment conducive to achieving lasting peace in the Middle East on the basis of the Two-State Solution.
"The presence of Foreign Minister (Marsudi) in this meeting will reaffirm the commitment and support of the Indonesian government to the independence and development of the Palestinians," Alatas said.
In the last 10 years, Indonesia, which hosted the Second Ministerial Meeting of CEAPAD in 2014, has provided 169 capacity building programs that involved 1,859 Palestinians in various fields, including good governance and microfinance.
Prioritizing Palestine in its foreign policy, Indonesia will continue to provide technical assistance and capacity building programs, particularly in training for SMEs and young professionals, women?s empowerment, information and communication technology, as well as educational scholarships.
This year`s CEAPAD ministerial meeting in Bangkok will produce a three year work plan for 2019-2021 which contains the priority sectors of development assistance needed by the Palestinians.
"The focus of the CEAPAD meeting is how East Asian countries can help improve Palestinians` capacity building, which will be very useful to prepare for their independence," Foreign Ministry`s spokesman Arrmanatha Nasir noted.
Reporter: Yashinta Difa Pramudyani
Editor: Andi Abdussalam
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