Dutch minister to visit RI

JAKARTA: Dutch education minister Loek Hermans will visit Indonesia next week in a bid to boost cooperation in both the technology and education fields between the two countries.

A media statement released by the Dutch Embassy here said that during his trip between Feb. 11 and Feb. 15, Hermans will sign a memorandum of understanding that will extend cooperation in research to 2004, a project that will cost 25 million euros.

The research to be conducted under the program covers the fields of biotechnology, medical knowledge and religion.

Hermans is also slated to meet President Megawati Soekarnoputri and Minister of National Education Malik Fajar and visit a number of universities and institutes, including Yogyakarta-based Gadjah Mada University and the Bandung Institute of Technology.

The Netherlands has been involved in a World Bank-coordinated aid program for elementary schools in the country since 2000. The bank has collected US$80 million, which is mostly used to provide scholarships and school subsidies. -- Antara