Jakarta (ANTARA) - Indonesia should optimize its position as the largest economy among Muslim-majority countries to lead the Muslim world, which is expecting it to take on the role, according to Deputy Foreign Minister Anis Matta.
While sending off an Indonesian humanitarian team to Palestine here on Thursday, he emphasized that Indonesia can assume this role by assisting other nations.
"To lead is to give, and one of the instruments of diplomacy that the Foreign Ministry is employing is humanitarian diplomacy," the deputy minister said.
The Foreign Ministry has started coordinating humanitarian efforts with non-governmental organizations, such as the Dompet Dhuafa Foundation, which put together the Palestine humanitarian team, he said, adding that a USD200 million fund is expected to be collected for Palestine.
Indonesia's humanitarian diplomacy will also focus on the Balkans, with Croatia as the first target.
According to the deputy minister, Croatia's mufti has proposed the development of an Islamic center in the country and Indonesia will help with its development through Indonesian Aid assistance.
Skilled workers
Meanwhile, Matta said that several European countries have requested skilled workers from Indonesia to fulfill their workforce needs, mostly in the hospitality sector.
"Albania requested 20 thousand workers, while Hungary and Germany asked for 15 thousand. Such requests are also found in other European countries," he informed.
To satisfy the high demand, the government will cooperate directly with vocational schools across the country which, according to Matta, will "make Indonesia's vocational schools much more active."
The deputy minister also expects the deployment of skilled Indonesian workers in Europe to bolster the number of Indonesian diaspora in the continent.
