DMI and Australian National Imams Council Push for Mosque-Based Cooperation

JAKARTA — Jusuf Kalla, Chairman of the Indonesian Mosque Council (DMI), is pushing for stronger cooperation between mosque organisations in Indonesia and Muslim communities in Australia, including training programmes, imam exchanges and mosque management.

“Relations between the faithful and organisations are things we usually undertake, such as training and exchanging imams. That can certainly be done,” said Jusuf Kalla in Jakarta on Wednesday (15/7/2026).

JK made the statement after receiving a courtesy visit from Sheikh Shadi Al Suleiman, President of the Australian National Imams Council, at the DMI Central Office on Matraman Road, East Jakarta. Jusuf Kalla said the development of Islam in Australia continues to grow as the number of Muslims from various countries rises and becomes part of Australian society.

“The development of Islam in Australia is truly remarkable, because of the diversity of Muslims from many countries who are immigrants in Australia,” he said.

Meanwhile, Sheikh Shadi Al Suleiman, President of the Australian National Imams Council, expressed his appreciation for the opportunity to visit and hold discussions with DMI’s leadership. He considered DMI’s role in managing Indonesia’s mosque network to be an extraordinary undertaking.

“It is very important that we try to bring mosques together and unite their activities so they can achieve the same goals. Bringing together 800,000 mosques in Indonesia is something beautiful,” he said.