Meet Airlangga Hartarto, JICA Hopes JKT MRT Project Will Continue

JAKARTA - Coordinating Minister for Economic Affairs Airlangga Hartarto met with Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) President Akihito Tanaka in Jakarta Wednesday, November 1, 2023. The meeting aims to discuss the sustainability of cooperation on several strategic projects that have been established between Indonesia and Japan through JICA.

Airlangga conveyed that one of the strategic projects discussed, namely the sustainability of the Mass Rapid Transportation (MRT) phase 2 of the North - South route, which needs to be adjusted.

"The Indonesian government supports the sustainability of the MRT project and also appreciates other national strategic projects that have been established between the two countries, such as the construction of toll roads for connectivity, Patimban port, cooperation in the oil and gas sector, digital infrastructure, and the development of economic zones," said Airlangga in his statement, Thursday, November 2.

Akihito expressed his hope that the MRT groundbreaking for the East-West route could be carried out in mid-2024 and positively welcomed the Government of Indonesia's commitment to continue the strategic projects that are currently underway in 2024 and beyond.

"We hope that these strategic projects will continue as a key element of cooperation between the two countries," said Akihito.

On this occasion, Airlangga and Akihito shared views on the importance of exploring cooperation in the field of human resource development considering that Japan needs technical workforce as well as Indonesia needs the expertise of Japanese workers to transform.

Airlangga also emphasized the importance of developing human resources in the digital sector.