S. African province seeks cooperation with Jakarta

Veeramalla Anjaiah, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta

There's something in Jakarta that has very much impressed the visiting Premier of KwaZulu-Natal province Sibusiso Ndebele. It is none other than the Taman Mini Indonesia Indah (TMII, "Beautiful Indonesia in Miniature Park").

KwaZulu-Natal is one of the South Africa's key provinces.

Any visit to Indonesia -- especially Jakarta -- would not be complete without including TMII on the itinerary. TMII offers a comprehensive overview of the social, cultural and architectural wealth of the archipelago.

For foreign visitors who have very limited time to get to know this beautiful archipelagic nation, TMII is the perfect solution.

And that's why Ndebele wants to build a similar park in KwaZulu-Natal.

"I am very much impressed by the beauty of Taman Mini. Coincidentally, we have been planning to build a cultural heritage park to boost our tourism industry. We have even allocated the money. After visiting it (Taman Mini), we would like to follow the Indonesian example," Ndebele, the first African National Congress (ANC) premier in KwaZulu-Natal, told The Jakarta Post on Monday.

The ambitious 57-year-old politician said he would be sending a team of architects to Jakarta to study more about TMII.

Ndebele, who arrived in Jakarta on July 8, is leading a nine- member delegation -- including five businesspeople -- to Indonesia to explore business opportunities and new forms of cooperation between Indonesia and KwaZulu-Natal. The delegation is planning to visit Yogyakarta and Bali before returning to South Africa on Saturday.

On Monday, Ndebele met Jakarta Governor Sutiyoso to discuss possible cooperation in various areas between the provinces.

"My meeting with Governor Sutiyoso was very fruitful. We have agreed on many things that would form the basis of our future partnership. I extended an invitation to Sutiyoso to visit KwaZulu-Natal. Sutiyoso accepted my invitation and he would visit my province soon and we will sign a comprehensive cooperation agreement," said Ndebele, who describes himself as a 'developmentalist.'

When asked about the main purpose of the visit, Ndebele said his delegation was interested in importing batik shirts, as well as looking into the tourism industry.

"Indonesia's batik shirts suit African people. They are very beautiful and people like them very much. I have brought our businesspeople with me to meet their Indonesian counterparts," Ndebele said.

KwaZulu-Natal, which has 10 million people, is the most diverse and outward-oriented province in South Africa and is supported by well-developed infrastructure.

South African ambassador to Indonesia G.M. Memela said that KwaZulu-Natal is the third biggest contributor to the country's gross domestic product.