We are true partners, showing a long-term commitment to strategic challenges in sustainability, agriculture, infrastructure, water, and life sciences and health. This was also the message in the Plan of Action that our Foreign Ministers Bruins Slot and Retno agreed upon during the visit of Minister Bruins Slot to Jakarta on 31 October and 1 November.

In sustainability, global challenges require global solutions. But those solutions need to be adapted to the local circumstances. The challenges and opportunities for renewable energy and climate action were at the forefront of our Renewable Energy and Climate Summit Indonesia-The Netherlands (9–13 October). With 150 Dutch and Indonesian companies, knowledge institutions, and government organizations participating, the message was clear: we are strengthening our cooperation, we have concrete ideas, and we are signing concrete deals to put this into practice.

Waste is one of the main global challenges. As part of our joint program in Plastics in Circles, we have set a next step on recycling at a local level (Ambon) and brought stakeholders together in Jakarta to learn from the lessons there for other parts of Indonesia. We’ve also seen many Indonesian staff visiting the Netherlands for study visits on waste management, with knowledge exchange at its core.

We had a big Bilateral Maritime Forum on 16 October. At the Indonesia Maritime Expo (17-19 October), our stand showcased what the Netherlands has to offer in the maritime sector. And with an Airport Development Mission in early November, we emphasized that our infrastructure expertise in the transport area is much broader.

The Dutch Ambassador for Business and Sustainable Development visited Sumatra and Java in the second half of November and was impressed with our cooperation on sustainable palm oil, especially for smallholders, and with the way we move forward on food estate, creating opportunities for both Indonesian and Dutch businesses.

With a visit by Vice Minister Slootmaker (Infrastructure and Water) at the end of November, we have brought our water cooperation to the next level. In Semarang, he saw concrete Dutch-Indonesian cooperation on water management. And in Jakarta, we discussed at the governmental level not just our bilateral relations but also our joint way forward for the World Water Forum in Bali (18-24 May 2024).

Finally, we have Harro Maat, an associate professor from Wageningen University, who is joining the Embassy Science Fellowship program. Until January 2024, our fellow will study opportunities for collaboration between the Indonesian and Dutch public and private sectors on the digitalization of the health system and find out what topics and issues should be addressed for further digitalizing the system.