TEMPO.CO, Jakarta - The Indian Ocean Rim Association (IORA) Summit will produce four documents in a bid to turn the Indian Ocean into a peaceful, stable and prosperous region, the Indonesian Foreign Ministry’s information and media bureau director Siti Sofia Sudarma said.
“The IORA Summit will produce four documents that will be agreed upon by the heads of IORA member states,” she said in a written statement on Sunday, March 5, 2017.
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According to Siti, Indonesia sees potential in the IORA to strengthen regionalism and encourage the culture of dialogue. “The efforts will be done by fostering norms, rules of engagement and institutions,” Siti said.
Siti explained that Indonesia may benefit from the Indian Ocean region, citing untapped investment potential of USD3.05 billion or 41 percent of Indonesia’s total investment realization. “The Indian Ocean region is one of the world’s tourism centers that could attract 121.8 million tourists worth USD146.8 billion.”
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Four documents to be produced in the IORA Summit are IORA Concord, IORA Action Plan, IORA Declaration on Preventing and Countering Terrorism and Violent Extremism, and Joint Declaration of the IORA Business Community to Build Partnerships for a Sustainable and Equitable Economic Growth.
The documents had been discussed in a ministerial meeting yesterday and had received support from 21 member states of IORA and seven dialogue partners. They will then be discussed gradually at the ministerial level meeting today before being ratified by the heads of state on Tuesday, March 7.
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The key document i.e. the IORA Concord, also known as Jakarta Concord, is a strategic document containing vision and norms of IORA meetings to strengthen regional architecture in facing the challenges ahead. The IORA Action Plan contains the actions plan for Jakarta Concord and enhancement of implementation of priority areas and cross- sector commitment.
The third document is the IORA Declaration on Preventing and Countering Terrorism and Violent Extremism which underlines the importance of cooperation among IORA member states in combating terrorism. The last one is the Joint Declaration of the IORA Business Community to Build Partnerships for a Sustainable Economic Growth which is aimed at strengthening cooperation and partnership to expand and diversify trade and investment, with a focus on small, medium-sized enterprises (SMEs).
DIKO OKTARA
