Currently, many countries seek to invest in Indonesia's transportation infrastructure; to this end, we have to take advantage of the opportunity.
Jakarta (ANTARA) - Indonesian Transportation Minister Budi Karya Sumadi held bilateral meetings with Japanese and South Korean delegations to discuss a number of existing and potential transportation cooperations.

Sumadi met with special advisor to the Prime Minister of Japan, Mori Masafumi, on Tuesday in Bali. On Monday, he met with South Korean Land, Infrastructure, and Transport Minister Won Hee-ryong.

The two countries are strategic partners of Indonesia and have frequently established mutually beneficial cooperation in various fields, including transportation, Sumadi said.

"Currently, many countries seek to invest in Indonesia's transportation infrastructure; to this end, we have to take advantage of the opportunity," he added.

During his meeting with Masafumi, he discussed a number of existing and potential collaboration projects between the two countries.

They included the Mass Rapid Transit (MRT), Patimban Harbor, proving ground development, Jakarta-Surabaya semi fast train, and the development of ocean infrastructure and its human resources.

The Indonesian Government has signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with Japan on the continuation of construction work on the Jakarta East-West Line as part of Phase 1 of MRT. The cooperation marks the start of Jakarta MRT construction acceleration, Sumadi said.

"I believe that, with the cooperation experience between the two countries in the previous MRT project, the construction will be smooth," he added.

Meanwhile, during the meeting with the South Korean delegation, Sumadi discussed several existing and potential projects.

They included the development of the Jakarta MRT and Jakarta LRT (Light Rail Transit), potential development collaboration in the ocean and air sector, as well as the development of transportation sector human resources.

"Yesterday, we and the South Korean government have also signed a memorandum of understanding on the construction of Jakarta MRT Phase 4," he said.

"In the future, we expect that the cooperation between the two countries will be more intensive," he added.

According to Sumadi, the momentum of the Indonesian G20 Presidency this year has been utilized to seek cooperation opportunities in transportation infrastructure development with several countries through creative non-state budget funding.

This has been undertaken so that transportation infrastructure development can continue to be carried out for improving the country's connectivity and competitiveness amid state budget limitations.

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Translator: Adimas R F P, Fadhli Ruhman
Editor: Rahmad Nasution
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