KUCHING, Dec 2 ― The Sarawak government will pursue closer economic cooperation with the Indonesian government, especially in Kalimantan, in various fields, Deputy Premier Datuk Amar Douglas Uggah Embas told the State Legislative Assembly.

He said the major initiatives include the development of cross-border economy through manufacturing and trade, taking advantage of the natural resources and agriculture produce from Kalimantan that could be utilised for downstream processing activities in Sarawak.

"At the same time, Sarawak has port facilities that provide faster and better shipping linkages to major economies like China and India.

"To facilitate trade and ensure better networking and communication among the industry players, investors and business communities, both from Sarawak and Indonesia, the state government will also establish a Trade and Tourism Office in Pontianak, West Kalimantan, that will have similar functions like Statos (Sarawak Trade and Tourism Office Singapore) in Singapore,” he said in his winding-up speech yesterday.

The Second Minister of Finance said, at the same time, the state government will continue efforts to attract more Indonesians for medical and education tourism, leveraging on the availability of private medical clinics and hospitals as well as private higher learning institutions such as Curtin University, Swinburne University, LimKokWing University, UCSI University and University Technology of Sarawak.

He believed Sarawak would gain from the relocation of Indonesia’s new capital from Jakarta to East Kalimantan.

He said presently, Sarawak receives a high number of Indonesian arrivals seeking treatments at various private hospitals and clinics as well as Indonesian students pursuing their studies in various private higher learning institutions in major towns in Sarawak. ― Borneo Post