Welcoming the Indonesian Minister

Welcoming the Indonesian Minister

The ministerial visit was seen as a coup for Territory cattlemen because 90 per cent of the Territory’s live cattle are sold to importers in Indonesia, and Minister Suswono is a key figure in the Indonesian Government. That county’s strong economy has delivered higher incomes to an emerging middle class. Beef is no longer seen as a prohibitively expensive commodity, resulting in a strong demand for live cattle.

The great majority of live cattle are exported from Darwin to the principal Indonesian population centres in Java and Sumatra, but following President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono’s recent visit to Canberra, there will be an increased initiative to expand a breeding cattle industry in the provinces of underdeveloped eastern Indonesia. “I invite the Territory live cattle industry to invest in Indonesia and help us reach our goal of self-sufficiency,” Minister Suswono told Territory Q. “Indonesia’s unemployment figure is very high and, by introducing self-sufficiency in cattle production through cooperation with Australians, we hope to see a decline in unemployment.”

Earlier, the Indonesian minister spoke at the NT Cattlemen’s Association annual conference, outlining his government’s plan to become 90 per cent self-sufficient in beef production by 2014. Then he witnessed the signing of a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) between the Territory and Indonesian private sector parties. Indonesia was represented by GAPPSI (Indonesian Beef Cattle Breeder Association) and the Territory by six live cattle exporting companies including the North Australia Cattle Company, the Consolidated Pastoral Company, Wellard Exports, Austrex, South East Asian Livestock and Landmark Global.

The agreement will see the exporting companies providing technical training and advice through the creation of cattle ‘breeding schools’ that aims to develop a base herd of 2500 productive females. The herd is expected to produce over 3000 progeny for sale through the Indonesian Government’s breeding credit scheme, an important part of its drive towards self-sufficiency in beef production.

The Territory presents at Shanghai

It is, without a doubt, the greatest show on earth. The 2010 Shanghai Expo is the latest installment to China’s dramatic emergence as an economic super power on the world stage. Massive world expos like this are staged every five years. The last one was in Aichi, Japan in 2005, before that was Hanover, Germany in 2000, but China’s staging of this expo was a signal to the world that its most populous nation is open for business. Countries seeking to take part in that economic activity were well advised to exhibit here.

Previous world expos attracted two-thirds to three-quarters of the world’s nations, but when China announced its intention to host this Expo, nearly everyone chose to come. Close to 200 nations, continents and regional groups are represented with pavilions in Shanghai, including Australia whose pavilion has, judging from the long queues stretching from its doors, become an early favourite with expo-goers.

Inside the Australian pavilion, visitors enjoy a cultural / economic snapshot of the land Down Under. Travelling through interior tunnels, visitors pass through the Indigenous mimih pole room, the meticulously-painted burial poles produced by the artists of the Territory community of Maningrida. There is a series of historical exhibits and a photo montage of successful Australians.

Visitors are seated in a circular 3D theatre seating up to 1000 visitors, where an animated film relates the story of the country’s innovation excellence as well as the three waves of immigration Indigenous, white and multi-racial. Pavilion visitors then finish in a spacious recreation area where Australian food is served accompanied by performing musicians and aerialists.

In an attempt to promote trade and investment, the Territory Government will host an NT Week based around three VIP events inside the Australian pavilion, plus a number of events outside the Expo site. Set for 23 to 27 August, NT Week will feature industry seminars with invited guests from various targeted industries such as mining and mineral exploration. Connie Jape and Gulumbu Yunupingu will act as Territory representatives in Australian pavilion exhibitions. Outside the World Expo site, the Territory will be staging a group art exhibition representing a Territory-wide range of Indigenous works and photography at the Capital Art Gallery. Shanghai is recognised as one of the leading art markets in Asia, and this exhibition aims to increase market awareness of Australian Indigenous art.

Three Indigenous art centres will participate in the Shanghai art exhibition from August to October 2010; the Buku-Larrnggay art centre from Yirrkala in East Arnhem Land, the Warlukurlangu Artists from Yuendumu in Central Australia, and the famous Hermannsburg Potters of Central Australia. These art centres intend to show the regional diversity of Territory Indigenous art, and they will be supported by renowned Alice Springs photographer Steve Strike, with an exhibition of his stunning Central Australian landscapes. The exhibition is being held to coincide and support the NT Week promotions in the Australian Pavilion.

The pavilion and its programs will respond to the World Expo’s ‘Better City, Better Life’ theme by focusing on Australia’s cities, including Darwin. The Territory Government has produced a special international edition of Territory Quarterly magazine to coincide with NT Week. It profiles a range of Territory industries while highlighting the rapid growth of Darwin and its role as Australia’s gateway to Asia.