Theagreement was reached at a meeting between Indonesia’s Health Minister NilaMoeloek and Japanese Minister of Health, Manpower and Welfare Yasuhisa Shiozakion July 16 on the sidelines of the ASEAN-Japan Health Ministers’ Meeting onUniversal Health Coverage and Population Ageing in Tokyo.
Thetwo ministers reached a consensus on exchanging expertise, experience andprogrammes to improve health services.
Currently,Indonesia and Japan have a wide range bilateral cooperation under theIndonesia-Japan Economic Partnership (I-JEPA) as well as the Japan InternationalCooperation Agency (JICA).
The cooperation includes exchange of experts, research, and human resourcedevelopment in the health sector.
Under the I-JEPA, 593 nurses and 1,199 care givers from Indonesia have been trainedin Japan and worked for some hospitals and nursing homes in the country. Everyyear, Japan has provided training for 500 Indonesian nurses in the country.
Moeloek said that the government will need to further explore the opportunitiesto increase cooperation in paramedics recruitment, human resource development,health services, health information technology and disease prevention.
The cooperation is expected to open more chances for Indonesian nurses toparticipate in the training and to work in Japan, and to increase the number ofIndonesian health experts studying in Japan, she added.-VNA