Indonesian Norway visit aiming to improve fisheries cooperation

A working visit to Norway took place in August by Susi Pudjiastuti, the Minister of Maritime Affairs and Fisheries of the Republic of Indonesia, in order to improve the quality of fisheries and fisheries cooperation between the two countries Indonesia.

Minister-Maritime-Indonesia

The visit included a series of ativities in the two cities of Trondheim and Oslo, where the Minister of Maritime Affairs and Fisheries was accompanied by Ambassador to Norway, Yuwono A. Putranto; Director General of Aquaculture Slamet Soebjakto; and Chairman of the Task Force IUUF Mas Achmad Santosa.

In Trondheim the activities were preceded by bilateral meetings with Norwegian Fisheries Minister, Elisabeth Aspaker. The two Ministers parties agreed to develop cooperation Aquaculture, Sustainable Fisheries and Illegal, Unreported and Unregulated Fishing (IUUF) / Crime Fisheries.

The parties also agreed on measures to further enhance fish trade between the two countries. Minister Aspaker said Indonesia needs to take advantage of tariff-free import facility in the form of zero percent for fishery products coming into Norway.

The dimension of crime in IUUF is very broad, including crimes involving human trafficking. To that end, the meeting also agreed on the collaboration between the two countries in addressing this problem.

The meeting also discussed the proposed establishment of the Bilateral Consultative Forum in the field of fisheries, which is a follow-up result of the meeting between Minister of Foreign Affairs, Retno Marsudi with the Foreign Minister of Norway, Borge Brende in the first meeting of the Joint Commission for Bilateral Cooperation between Indonesia and Norway in Oslo earlier in June.

Marine-IndonesiaAspaker stated that Norway is ready to establish cooperation with the Indonesian fisheries which she viewed as an important partner in the field of fisheries, both bilaterally and in terms of multilateral fora.

Minister Susi was also one of the speakers in the seminar ‘20 Years Anniversary Celebration – The Code of Conduct and Aquaculture’, held at Aqua Nor, an international scale exhibition held in Norway since 1979.

Aqua Nor is the meeting place for industry players within fisheries and aquaculture, which has in recent years attracted about 18,000 to 20,000 visitors from around the world.

Besides Susi Minister, several ministers from other countries also participated as a speaker, such as the Norwegian Fisheries Minister, Elizabeth Aspaker and the Minister of Fisheries and Agriculture of Brazil, Helder Barbalho.

In his presentation, Minister Susi insisted on Indonesia’s commitment to responsible fisheries management.

“We want a better marine conservation, but at the same time seeking to improve the production of marine products,” he said.

Before ending the visit agenda in Trondheim, Minister Susi had the opportunity to hold meetings with companies within the field of aquaculture and shipping such as Kongsberg, Aquaoptima / Aqualine, EWOS, Pharmaq, North Atlantic Seafood Forum, Morenot and Ulstein.

In Oslo the Minister’s visit focused on the development of bilateral cooperation between Indonesia and Norway in combating IUUF / fisheries crime held at the Ministry of Commerce, Industry and Fisheries Norway. At another meeting high officials of the Directorate General of Taxation, Ministry of Finance, Baharkam Police and the Criminal Investigation Police also joined.

About Joakim Persson

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