INVESTING IN A NEW ERA OF ENDURING PEOPLE-TO-PEOPLE TIES
President Biden and President Widodo celebrated the health and strength of our people-to-people ties marked by more than 8,400 Indonesians studying in the United States and more than 16,000 alumni of U.S. government-sponsored exchange programs in Indonesia. President Biden highlighted the recently opened American Space at the Istiqlal National Mosque, the only American Space in the world located in a mosque, as well as Peace Corps’ goal of working with Indonesia to return operations to pre-pandemic levels. Building on this decades-long partnership and recognizing this new era of cooperation under our Comprehensive Strategic Partnership, President Biden announced the following new programs to further strengthen these ties:
- Educating the Next Generation: President Biden applauds President Widodo’s support for the establishment of a Georgetown University School of Foreign Service satellite program in Jakarta to facilitate degree programs for both American and Indonesian current and future policymakers, along with those from ASEAN member states. Georgetown’s presence will help build human capital and research capacity between Indonesia, the United States, and Southeast Asian countries in the fields of environment, development, governance, and security.
- Restoring Indonesia’s National Museum: The United States intends to help Indonesia’s National Museum rebuild after suffering a devastating fire in September. The program plans to bring U.S. experts to Indonesia and fund training to help restore this national landmark in Jakarta.
- Exchanging Experts on Education and Culture: Through a memorandum of understanding between the Smithsonian’s National Museum of Asian Art and a unit under the Indonesian Ministry of Education, Culture, Research, and Technology, the two countries will facilitate opportunities for training and partnership that deepen knowledge and build skills through peer-to-peer collaboration.
- Expanding Ties between Health Experts: The United States and Indonesia intend to extend their five-year MOU on health cooperation when it expires in May 2024. The new MOU intends to enhance cooperation through increased research and technical collaboration, investment in human capital development, and strengthened work on pandemic preparedness, prevention, and response.
- Investing in Health Preparedness: The United States and Indonesia plan to expand our health partnership between USAID and the Coordinating Ministry of Human Development and Cultural Affairs in the areas of health financing and global health security. The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention intends to launch an initiative to provide five years of intensified support for Indonesia’s goal of improving immunization coverage and decreasing the burden of vaccine preventable diseases among children. The U.S. National Institutes of Health continues over a decade of partnership with Indonesia on clinical research to guide the management and prevention of diseases.
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