Bali – The Archipelagic and Island States (AIS) Forum Summit will be held in Bali on 10-11 October 2023. The appointment of Bali as host of the AIS Forum Summit was decided through the 8th Senior Official Meeting (SOM) which took place on 29-30 August 2023 in Antananarivo, Madagascar.
“Indonesia has initiated the formation of the AIS Forum since 2017. This AIS Forum was formed to encourage collaboration between island and archipelagic countries throughout the world to jointly overcome the challenges and problems they face, especially in the marine development sector and climate change mitigation and overcoming marine pollution. ,” said Secretary of the Indonesian Coordinating Ministry for Maritime Affairs and Investment, Ayodhia GL Kalake.
Ayodhia Kalake also said that in general the topics that will be discussed are related to four things, namely the implementation of the blue economy, adaptation and mitigation of climate change, marine waste which is included in overcoming marine pollution, as well as marine and maritime governance which is in accordance with the problem focus of the establishment of the AIS Forum. Alone.
Assistant Deputy for Delimitation of Maritime Zones and Border Areas at the Coordinating Ministry for Maritime Affairs and Fisheries, Sora Lokita, stated that at the AIS Forum Summit which was held in Bali, one of the main targets was the leaders’ declaration, which contains the hopes of state leaders, how in the future this AIS Forum Summit will continue to develop into an international organization that can help the benefit of islanders or residents of island and archipelagic countries, as well as improve and enhance various programs and work that have been carried out by the AIS Forum.
Assistant Deputy Sora also emphasized that the target of the AIS Forum Summit is to serve as a forum for aspirations and hopes that prioritize the interests of the people of the country itself.
Project Coordinator of the AIS Forum Secretariat, Riny Modaso, said that the AIS Forum continues to be dedicated to facilitating cooperation and innovation between island and archipelagic countries, with the upcoming activity, namely the First Summit in Bali, which will mark a historic moment in its journey as a global forum.
Meanwhile, Deputy for Maritime Sovereignty and Energy Coordination, Coordinating Ministry for Maritime Affairs, Jodi Mahardi emphasized that no one can understand the seriousness and complexity of the problems that AIS countries face better than the island and archipelagic countries themselves.
“And, no one will understand the solutions to our problems better than people who in real life are affected by these problems and have solved them themselves,” explained Jodi Mahardi.
According to him, this forum belongs to all island and archipelagic countries in the world, regardless of size, location and level of economic development.
“This is a hope for all of us to be able to foster a sense of ownership, a desire to strengthen collaboration, and expand the impact of our cooperation to many other communities in various countries and regions,” he concluded.