TEMPO.CO, Mataram - Boasting halal tourist destinations, West Nusa Tenggara (NTB) has been selected to host the 5th International Islamic School Robot Olympiad (IISRO) by the Indonesian Robot Contenst (KRI). As many as 370 robot-loving students converge at the event which will be held on August 17 to 19, 2016.

Indonesian students and 30 Malaysian students are participating in various robotics competitions, namely in the categories of Sumo, Aerial, Transporter, Chef, Underwater, Theatre, Soccer, Firefighting and Rescue. “Yes, we have chosen this place [NTB] because of its halal tourism,” said the KRI chairman Yudi Tri Wibowo during the opening ceremony.

The earlier editions of the IISRO were held in Kuala Lumpur (twice), Bandung, Johor Bahru and Yogyakarta. Whereas next year’s event will be held in Japan.

The KRI currently has 12,000 members. Some 70 percent of whom use domestic-made robots. A participant R Athala Ananda Putra, 10, 5th grade student of Muhammadiyah 4 elementary school Surabaya, claimed that he had participated in three similar events in East Java. “This is the first time I go outside Surabaya,” he said.

NTB Culture and Tourism Department head Lalu Moh Faozal looked excited when he opened the IISRO. “It is the first event of many attractions in Lombok Sumbawa Cultural Month [BBLS],” he said, Thursday, August 18, 2016.

SUPRIYANTHO KHAFID