40 Diplomat of Friendly Countries Attend Indonesia Gastrodiplomacy Series in Makassar

JAKARTA - The Ministry of Foreign Affairs together with the Makassar City Government successfully held the "Indonesia Gastrodiplomacy Series (IGS): Diplomatic Tour Goes to Makassar 2026" which was held last week.

IGS Makassar 2026 was attended by 40 foreign diplomat participants from 27 friendly countries consisting of ambassadors, heads of representative offices, consul generals and senior diplomats who handle cultural, economic, trade and investment fields.

Carrying the theme "Bringing Flavours, Cultures and Business Opportunities", participants have the opportunity to get to know the richness of the history and culinary specialties of Celebes Land, which has been known as an international spice route since the 16th century.

The IGS delegation was led by the Director General of Information and Public Diplomacy (IDP) of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Ambassador Heru H. Subolo, accompanied by the Expert Staff for Inter-institutional Relations, Prasetyo Hadi.

The presence of diplomats from friendly countries in the South Sulawesi capital was warmly welcomed by the Mayor of Makassar, Munafri Arifuddin.

In his opening remarks at the gala dinner and business forum, the Mayor of Makassar expressed his appreciation for the presence of all diplomatic corps of friendly countries.

He emphasized the importance of fostering friendship between Indonesia and partner countries to encourage concrete cooperation.

"Gastronomy has a unique power to bring people together, allowing us to share stories, traditions, and values beyond borders and languages," said Mayor Munafri, launching the Indonesian Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Tuesday (30/6).

In line with this, the Director General of IDP, Ambassador Heru H. Subolo, also echoed the power of gastronomy as an important instrument of soft power diplomacy.

"A shared meal can foster understanding, create trust, and open pathways for collaboration that often endure far beyond the dining table," said Ambassador Heru.

The IGS Makassar 2026 which was held on June 23-25 is the 6th edition after it was successfully held in other cities such as Jakarta, Bandung, Labuan Bajo (NTT), and Lombok (NTB).

This activity is part of Indonesia's soft power diplomacy to increase the positive image of the nation at the global level.

Through culinary instruments, IGS aims to increase people-to-people contact, encourage regional economic diplomacy, strengthen cultural diplomacy and tourism promotion, develop sister city cooperation, bridge regional collaboration with diplomatic networks, and encourage international academic and research collaboration.

The series of IGS activities this time includes live cooking demonstrations of typical culinary from the four largest ethnic groups in South Sulawesi, the colossal I La Galigo performance, business and investment forums for regional flagship products, and an exhibition of local UMKM ready for export built by the Makassar City Government and DEKRANASDA.

In addition, foreign diplomat participants also participated in one-on-one business matching with local business actors, a special meeting with the Mayor of Makassar, an Indonesian textile fashion show, and an excursion to Makassar's flagship tourist destinations.

Based on the recapitulation of the Makassar City Investment and One-Stop Service Agency (DPMPTSP), a total of 16 countries (including Fiji, Costa Rica, Mexico, Nigeria, Poland, Peru, and Tunisia) expressed interest in further discussing the potential for cooperation.

The cooperation being explored includes the establishment of sister cities, educational cooperation with Hasanuddin University, management of industrial areas, as well as the export of local commodities such as coffee, palm sugar, fishery products, spices, textiles/batik, and honey.

IGS Makassar 2026 also reaped positive testimonials from participants.

"I like Indonesian food, probably the best seafood I had (in Indonesia) is in Makassar," said the Ambassador of Finland to Indonesia, Pekka Kaihilahti.

Meanwhile, the Ambassador of Peru to Indonesia, Luis Raúl Tsuboyama Galván, admitted to being impressed by Makassar's strategic position as a hub for East Indonesia, as well as its rich history and cultural diversity.

"We learned more about Makassar culture - Bugis, Toraja, Makassar (Indonesia) is a big archipelago, (each) experience is different," he said.