- Arianti Widya
Nusa Dua – The Indonesian President Joko Widodo (Jokowi) invited participating countries of the Archipelagic and Island States (AIS) Forum to collaborate in addressing marine issues.
This was conveyed by the President during the opening of the 1st High-Level Meeting of the AIS Forum at the Bali Nusa Dua Convention Center (BNDCC), Bali.
"The sea is not a separator between lands but, in fact, it unites them. The sea is a binder and a link between continents,"the President stated on Wednesday.
Presiden Jokowi membuka KTT Archipelagic and Island States Forum (AIS) 2023
- Tangkapan layar Youtube Sekretariat Presiden
According to the Head of State, all archipelagic and island states together face complex and interrelated global challenges.
"For example, issues such as sea level rise, marine resource governance, and marine pollution," President Jokowi said.
The President gave an example, "If we throw rubbish on land, it does not necessarily mean that the rubbish will move to land in another part of the world. However, if we throw rubbish into the ocean, the rubbish can reach any land in the world,"
"Therefore, collaboration and solidarity between archipelagic and island countries are crucial to creating strategic, concrete, and tactical measures for resolving shared problems,” the President remarked.
The AIS Forum, which is the first one of its kind to be held since the forum was formed in 2018, is deemed an important opportunity to set the direction of collaboration going forward.
Presiden Jokowi buka forum AIS
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In this regard, President Widodo encouraged to drive advancement in three aspects: solidarity, equality, and inclusivity as principles that must be held together; priority on concrete cooperation that is adjusted to the needs of beneficiary countries; and third, robust and dynamic cooperation framework to respond to challenges going forward.
Indonesia is hosting the 1st High-Level Meeting of the AIS Forum, which is attended by 30 countries out of 51 AIS countries and four international organizations.
