Jakarta — President of the Republic of Indonesia, Prabowo Subianto, held a bilateral meeting with Fijian Prime Minister Sitiveni Rabuka at the Merdeka Palace in Central Jakarta on Thursday (April 24).

During the warm and friendly meeting between the two nations, PM Sitiveni expressed deep gratitude to Prabowo for Indonesia’s support during Fiji’s difficult times.

He recalled the early days of diplomatic relations between the two countries, which began in 1974.

“You respected Fiji’s sovereignty—unlike some of our traditional friends who turned away from us at the time. You have been a loyal friend—diplomatically and cooperatively—since we established relations in 1974,” Sitiveni remarked.

He also extended appreciation to Prabowo for the signing of an agreement to establish an agricultural training center in Fiji, which is expected to develop into a regional hub.

“We also deeply value the grant of 12 million Fijian dollars—equivalent to around 6 million US dollars—which is a significant amount for Fiji, especially because it comes in the form of a grant,” he said.

Sitiveni added that Indonesia’s assistance allowed Fiji to move forward without the burden of new debt. Thanks to the grant, several young Fijians are now undergoing training in agriculture and livestock farming.

“For this, we honor you, we thank you, and we intend to make the most of the opportunities and doors you have opened for our people and government,” Sitiveni said.

He shared that the new regional agricultural training center would be built near the town of Rakiraki, in one of the provinces that had previously received less development attention.

He believes that the center will become a crucial driver for improving the livelihoods and skillsets of local communities.

“We truly appreciate your contributions. We also look forward to strengthening our cooperation in medicine, research, and education,” he added.

Sitiveni further emphasized that Fiji is learning a great deal from Indonesia’s development journey and intends to apply those lessons in its own national strategy.

“We are going to borrow a few pages—maybe even entire chapters—from your development book and adapt them into our own development plans,” he said.

For this reason, the Fijian government expressed its gratitude to Indonesia and to Prabowo for fostering cooperation in areas such as climate change and financing, as well as agriculture and development.

Sitiveni also expressed interest in expanding bilateral cooperation with Indonesia in the fields of defense and security, as well as medicine, research, and education.