Indonesia suffers losses due to illegal fishing but the Indonesian Ministry of Maritime Affairs and Fisheries has no a vessel capable of patrolling (the country's) sea
Jakarta (ANTARA) - Japan has handed over a fishery patrol vessel Hakurei Maru to Indonesia, along with maintenance and equipment fund worth 2.2 billion yen or Rp274 billion. Director of Asia Pacific Affairs of the Indonesian Foreign Ministry Santo Darmosumarto and Japanese Ambassador to Indonesia Masafumi Ishii signed an exchange of notes marking the handover of the fishery patrol vessel here on Friday.

"Indonesia suffers losses due to illegal fishing but the Indonesian Ministry of Maritime Affairs and Fisheries has no a vessel capable of patrolling (the country's) sea," Economic Counselor of the Japanese Embassy in Jakarta Shimizu Kazuhiko said.

That is the reason why the Japanese fishery bureau decided to hand over the fishery patrol vessel to Indonesia with the aim of "improving the authorized agency's capability to patrol fishing in the Indonesian sea," he said.

Japan expressed the hope that the grant would contribute to maintaining economic and social stability and increasing the people's welfare.

The vessel which was manufactured in 1993 is 63.37 meters long and has international standard tonnage of 741 tons. The vessel has a maximum carrying capacity of 29 people.

"After March 2020, we will provide training on the repair, use and sailing of the vessel. The vessel will be handed over to the Maritime Affairs and Fisheries Ministry in 2021," Kazuhiko said.

The grant is the first of its kind the Japanese government extended to another country, he said.

The grant is also related to efforts to step up the capacity of law enforcement in the Indonesian maritime territory that will contribute to realizing the concept of "free and open Indian Ocean." (INE)

Translator: Suwanti/Suharto
Editor: Fardah Assegaf
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