The field station of the Faculty of Fisheries and Marine Sciences (FPIK) located in Ancol Jakarta, namely the IPB Fisheries and Marine Observation Station (IFMOS), received a visit from representatives of The United Nations Educational, Scientific, and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) Indonesia.

This visit is part of an initiative for educational cooperation, community empowerment and institutions, especially related to the field of conservation of inland waters, coastal waters (nearshore), and marine waters (offshore) with a focus on studies in the Indonesian region and in Timor Leste.

The meeting at IFMOS Ancol is a continuation of UNESCO’s previous visit which took place at the Department of Aquatic Resources Management (MSP) of IPB University. At the meeting, the Head of the MSP Department of IPB University, Prof. Hefni Effendi was accompanied by one of the lecturers, Dr. Mukhlis Kamal (Lecturer at the ARM Department).

Dr Mukhlis Kamal is also an expert at the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) in the field of Ecosystem Approach in Fisheries Management (EAFM). In his capacity as an FAO EAFM expert, Dr Mukhlis explained about his trip to Sudan, Bangladesh, and Timor Leste.

“Several times the ARM Department has also hosted EAFM training attended by Marine and Fisheries staff from Bangladesh and ASEAN member countries. So, in terms of organizing international training courses, community empowerment (capacity building), institutional empowerment on fisheries and marine affairs, the ARM Department has a good portfolio,” said Prof Hefni.

This, he continued, is one of UNESCO’s assessment criteria regarding the ARM Department’s capability in organizing international events such as training courses and others.

During the visit, UNESCO was represented by Adhe Lignita Wulandari and Ryuichi Fukuhara. Meanwhile, from IPB University, Prof. Hefni Effendi and Intan Rabiyanti, SPi, MSi, accompanied by IFMOS technicians and three IPB University Vocational School students who are undergoing internship programs at the facility were present.

The main agenda of the meeting included discussions on collaborative projects between the ARM Department, IFMOS, and FPIK that are being pioneered, ongoing, and completed. On this occasion, UNESCO also explained collaborative projects related to fisheries and marine affairs that are currently underway in Indonesia and the Biosphere Reserve in Indonesia which is also UNESCO’s scope of work.

After the discussion, the participants visited the ‘Crab Apartment’, a special facility at IFMOS that is used for the process of raising various types of mangrove crabs.

Prof. Fredinan Yulianda as Dean of FFMS IPB University welcomed the initiation of this collaboration. He hopes that the collaboration between UNESCO and the ARM Department of IPB University in the field of aquatic resource conservation will soon be realized.

At the end of the visit, UNESCO handed over a number of books containing collaborative research and community development carried out by UNESCO in Indonesia.