Introduction

 

The Asian-African Summit 2005 and the Commemoration of the Golden Jubilee of the Asian-African Conference 1955 will take place respectively in Jakarta on 22-23 April and in Bandung on the 24 April 2005.

The theme of the Summit, “Reinvigorating the Bandung Spirit: Working Towards a New Asian-African Strategic Partnership”, shall mark the dawn of a new era of cooperation among countries of the two regions towards a peaceful and prosperous future.

The New Asian-African Strategic Partnership is a vehicle to enable the countries of Asia and Africa to cooperate for their mutual benefit and is intended to promote peace, prosperity and progress in the two regions.

The Asian African Conference 1955 at a Glance

The Second World War ended in August 1945, but neither did it end the animosity between the nations, nor create peace and security in the world. And there were new emerging problems which created hostility and led to open wars, such as in the Korean Peninsula, Indochina, Palestine, South and North Africa.

Those problems were mostly caused by the two blocks which had different interests and ideologically contradicted, the West Block led by the United States and the East Block led by the Soviet Union. Each blocks tried to persuade the countries in Asia and Africa to be their supporters. This situation known as “the Cold War” kept the concealed hostility between the two blocks and their supporters.

The world situation was also affected by colonialism in many parts of the world, particularly in Asia and Africa. Before 1945, Asian and African continents were colonized by the Western countries in various forms. However, since 1945 many Asian-African countries became independent, while some others were striving for it, for example Algeria, Tunisia, and Morocco in North Africa; Vietnam in Indo China, and countries in the southern end of Africa. Some independent Asian-African countries also faced colonial problems like West Irian in Indonesia, conflict between India and Pakistan on Kashmir, conflict between Arabian countries on the question of Palestine. Some of the Arab-Palestine were forced to leave their homeland and became refugees since their country was taken forcibly by the Israeli troops with help from the United States.

Meanwhile, the nations in the world, particularly in Asian-African, were anxious since the nuclear weapons were being proliferated. There were also conflicts between groups in the society in some independent Asian-African countries as the result of the colonialism (devide et impera politics) and the Cold War between the two blocks.

Even though an international body had already been established, namely the United Nations, served for handling the problems of the world, but in fact this body had not been able to solve those problems. In reality, the Asian-African nations suffered from the effect of the problems.

Those were the background of the idea to organize the Asian-African Conference.

The Idea of an Asian-African Conference

The Government’s statement on the Indonesian foreign policy delivered by the Prime Minister Mr. Ali Sastroamidjojo to the parliament on 25 August 1953 stated:

“We are of the view that cooperation between countries in Asia and Africa is important, since we are confident that strong cooperation between those countries will strengthen the efforts in creating peace in the world. The cooperation between those countries is in line with the rules in the United Nations which fever regional arrangements. Moreover, those countries have in general same position on some international matters. Therefore, they have the common ground to organize a special group. Thus, we will continue to carry on and strengthen that cooperation.” The statement reflected the idea and the wish of the Indonesian Government to strengthen the cooperation between the Asian-African countries.

At the beginning of 1954, the Prime Minister of Ceylon (Sri Lanka) Sir John Kotelawala invited the Prime Ministers of Burma (U Nu), India (Jawaharlal Nehru), Indonesia (Ali Sastroamidjojo), and Pakistan (Mohammed Ali) to an informal meeting in his country. The invitation received warm welcome from all the invited prime ministers.

The meeting, later known as the Colombo Conference, was held on 28 April – 2 May 1954. During the Conference the Prime Ministers discussed matters that involved common interests.

The attention of the participants was attracted by the question of the Prime Minister of Indonesia who asked:

“Where do we stand now, we the peoples of Asia, in this world of ours today?”

The question was then answered by Prime Minister of Indonesia himself:

“We have now indeed arrived at the cross-roads of the history of mankind. It is therefore that we Prime Ministers of five Asian countries are meeting here to discuss those crucial problems of the peoples we represent. There are the very problems which urge Indonesia to propose that another conference be convened wider in scope, between the African and Asian nations. I am convinced that the problems are not only convened to the Asian countries represented here, but also are of equal importance to the African and other Asian countries.”

That statement gave way to the establishment of the Asian-African Conference.

Indonesia also emphasized on the importance of an Asian-African Conference in the next meeting. Nevertheless, the idea was welcome by the participants with hesitation.

The Prime Minister of Indonesia went to Colombo on the invitation of the Prime Minister of Sri Lanka, bringing the result of the working meeting between the Heads of Indonesian Missions in Asia and Africa held on 9-22 March 1954 in Tugu, Bogor, chaired by the Foreign Minister Mr. Sunario.

Finally, the Joint Statement of the Colombo Conference stated that the participants of the Conference agreed to convene an Asian-African Conference and agreed to the proposal that the Prime Minister of Indonesia explored the possibility of the convening of the Conference.

Preparation for the Conference

Based on the Joint Statement of the Colombo Conference, Indonesia was assigned to explore the possibility of the convening of the Asian-African Conference. In doing this task, Indonesia approached 18 Asian-African countries through diplomatic channel to study the view of these countries of an Asian-African Conference. Indonesia explained that the main goal of the conference was to discuss the common interests of the Asian-African countries, enhance the creation of world peace, and promote Indonesia as the host of the Conference.

Basically, the 18 countries welcome the idea and agreed that Indonesia be the host. But they had differences in terms of the time and participants.

On 18 August 1954 Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru of India sent a letter to the Prime Minister of Indonesia reminding Indonesia of the emergency situation in the world in relation to the idea of an Asian-African Conference. The Prime Minister of India welcomed the idea, but he was hesitant whether such conference could be held. Right after the visit of the Indonesian Prime Minister on 25 September 1954 that he was confident on the importance of the conference, as reflected in a Joint Statement after the visit of the Indonesian Prime Minister: “ The Prime Ministers discussed also the proposal to have a conference of representatives of Asian and African countries and were agreed that a conference of this kind was desirable and would be helpful in promoting the cause of peace and a common approach to these problems. It should be held at an early date.”

The same confidence was stated by the Prime Minister of Burma, U Nu, on 28 September 1954.

Therefore, the preparation for the Asian-African Conference was considered complete and succeeded. The next step was to prepare for the convening of the Conference.

The Prime Minister of Indonesia then invited the participants of the Colombo Conference (Burma, Sri Lanka, India, and Pakistan) to a Five Country Conference (Konferensi Panca Negara) in Bogor on 28-29 December 1054 to discuss the preparation for the Asian-African Conference.

The Bogor Conference was succeeded in formulating an agreement, stating that the Asian-African Conference was going to be held and co-chaired by the five countries as sponsors. The invitations to participants were sent by Indonesia on behalf of the five countries.

The Aim of the Conference

The Bogor Conference produced 4 (four) basic aims of the Asian-African Conference, namely:

1. To enhance the goodwill and cooperation between Asian-African nations, to explore and promote their interests, either individual or common interests, and to create and promote friendship and relations as good neighbors;
2. To discuss the matters and relations in social, economic, and cultural sectors between the countries;
3. To discuss the matters, particularly related to Asian-African nations, for example matters related to national sovereignty, racialism, and colonialism;
4. To observe the position of Asia and Africa, and their nations in the world, to observe what they can give to promote peace and cooperation in the world.

Participants and Time of the Conference

 

It was decided that the Conference would invite 25 countries, namely: Afghanistan, Cambodia, Federation of Central Africa, People’s Republic of China, Egypt, Ethiopia, Gold Coast, Iran, Iraq, Japan, Jordan, Laos, Lebanon, Liberia, Libya, Nepal, the Philippines, Saudi Arabia, Sudan, Syria, Thailand (Muang Thai), Turkey, Democratic Republic of Viet-nam (North Viet-nam), South Viet-nam, and Yemen. The conference was decided to be held in the fourth week of April 1955.

Considering that the invited countries had different foreign policies and political and social systems, the Bogor Conference decided that accepting the invitation did not mean that the invited countries would change its view on the status of other countries. The Conference also upheld the principle that governmental system or the way of life of a certain country could not be intervened by other countries. The main goal of the Conference was to make the participants understand each others’ positions.

Organizational Structure of the Organizing Committee

In preparing the Asian-African Conference, Indonesia established a secretariat for the conference represented by the sponsor countries.

To implement the results of the Bogor Conference, the five sponsor countries soon established a Joint Secretariat. Indonesia was represented by Secretary General of the Foreign Ministry Roeslan Abdul Gani acting as Chairman, while four other countries were represented by their Heads of Missions in Jakarta, namely U Mya Sein of Burma, M. Saravanamuttu of Sri Lanka, B.F.H.B. Tyobji of India, and Choudhri Khaliquzzaman of Pakistan. There were 10 staff doing daily routines, two of them were from Burma, one from Sri Lanka, two others from India, four from Indonesia, and one from Pakistan. Beside the 10 staff, there were 4 committees, namely Committee for Politics, Committee for Economy, Committee for Social Matters, and Committee for Culture. In addition, there were also committees for finance, equipment, and press.

The Indonesian Government set up an Interdepartmental Committee on 11 January 1955, chaired by the Secretary General of the Joint Secretariat. The members and advisors were recruited from various departments to help preparing for the conference. In Bandung where the Conference was located was formed a Local Committee on 3 January 1955, chaired by Sanusi Hardjadinata, the Governor of West Java. The Local Committee was assigned to prepare and facilitate accommodation, logistic, transport, health, communication, security, entertainment, protocol, information, etc.

Gedung Concordia and Gedung Dana Pensiun were prepared as the venue of the meetings. Hotel Homann, Hotel Preanger, and 12 (twelve) other hotels, private and governmental housing were also prepared as accommodation for 1300 guests.

For transportation, 143 cars, 30 taxis, 20 buses, 230 drivers, and 350 tons of gasoline were available, with 175 tons gasoline as reserve.

While examining the preparation for the Conference in Bandung on 17 April 1955, the Indonesian President Soekarno inaugurated the change of Gedung Concordia to Gedung Merdeka, and Gedung Dana Pensiun to Gedung Dwi Warna, and some part of Jalan Raya Timur to Jalan Asia Afrika. The change of name was aimed to make the conference be more fun and create an atmosphere which was in line with the aim of the conference.

On 15 January 1955 the invitation to the Asian-African Conference were sent to 25 (twenty five) heads of government in Asia and Africa. From the 25 countries invited, only one rejected the invitation, namely the Central African Federation, since the country was still occupied by the colonialist. Meanwhile, the other 24 countries welcome the invitation, even some of them were hesitant. Some of the delegation arrived in Bandung via Jakarta on 16 April 1955.

On 18 April 1955 the people were ready to welcome the participants of the conference. The delegations walked out of Hotel Homann and Hotel Preanger to Gedung Merdeka. This walk is then known as the Bandung Walks.

After the national anthem “Indonesia Raya” was played, the President of Indonesia, Ir. Soekarno, delivered his opening speech titled “Let a New Asia and New Africa Be Born”. In his statement, the President said that even though the participants came from different nations, different social, cultural, religion, political background, and even different skin color, we could be united by the same bitter experiences caused by colonialism, by the same devotion to defend and strengthen the world peace.

At the end of his speech, the President said:

“I hope that it will give evidence of the fact that we, Asian and African leaders, understand that Asia and Africa can prosper only when they are united, and that even the safety of the world at large can not be safeguarded without a united Asian-African. I hope that this Conference will give guidance to mankind, will point out to mankind the way which it must take to attain safety and peace. I hope that it will give evidence that Asia and Africa have been reborn, that a New Asia and New Africa have been born!”

The speech of the President attracted and influenced the participants that the Prime Minister of India, supported by all the participants, congratulated the President on his speech.

After the speech, the President left the room and as the Chairman ad interim, the Prime Minister of Indonesia opened the meeting. The Prime Minister Gamal Abdel Nasser of Egypt then suggested the Prime Minister of Indonesia be the Chairman of the meeting. This suggestion was then supported by the Heads of Delegation of the People’s Republic of China, Jordan, and the Philippines. Since there were no other nominees, all the participants agreed to the elect the Prime Minister of Indonesia as the Chair of the meeting. The Chair of the Joint Secretariat, Roeslan Abdul Gani, was also elected as the Secretary General of the Conference.

The Conference and the meetings run well since ahead of the Conference some informal meetings between the Heads of Delegations of the sponsoring countries were conducted on 16-17 April 1955. The meetings resulted in some agreements regarding the procedure of the meeting, the Chair of the meeting and other important matters. It was decided that the participants would use consensus system in making a decision. The Prime Minister of Indonesia would be elected as the Chair of the Conference. Some meetings were open for public, but some others were closed only for the participants. There were 3 (three) committees: Politics, Economy, and Culture. All the agreements were approved in a meeting. The Chairs of the Committees were:

Chair of the Conference : Mr. Ali Sastroamidjojo, Prime Minister of Indonesia

Chair of the Committee for Politic : Mr. Ali Sastroamidjojo, Prime Minister of Indonesia
Chair of the Committee for Economy : Prof. Ir. Roosseno, Minister for Economy, Indonesia
Chair of the Committee for Culture : Mr. Moh. Yamin, Minister for Education, Lectures, and Culture, Indonesia

There were some predictable problems in the following meetings, particularly in the Committee for Politics. The problems were caused by the differences in political view and problems faced by the countries in Asia and Africa.

On account of the wisdom of the Chair of the meeting and the tolerance and kinship between the participants, the deadlocks could always be prevented and the meeting could be concluded.

After a week, on 24 April 1955, the General Meeting of the Asian-African Conference was held. In the meeting, the Secretary General of the Conference read the statement of each Committee as the result of the Conference. The General Meeting agreed to all the statements. The Meeting was then followed by speeches by all of the Heads of Delegation. Finally, the Chair of the Conference delivered his speech and closed the Conference.

The Final Communiqué stated among others that the Asian-African Conference had observed matters that were of common interests of Asian-African countries and had discussed the way of these countries to cooperate more closely in economic, cultural, and political field.

The result of the Conference was known as the Ten Principles of Bandung, which was a political statement containing the basic principles in the efforts to promote peace and cooperation in the world.

The Ten Principles of Bandung:

1. Respect for fundamental human rights and for the purposes and the principles of the Charter of the United Nations.
2. Respect for the sovereignty and territorial integrity of all nations.
3. Recognition of the equality of all races and of the equality of all nations large and small.
4. Respect for the right of each nation to defend itself singly or collectively, in conformity with the Charter of the United Nations.
5. Adoption of the Outcome of the Asian-African Summit.
6. (a). Abstention from the use of arrangements of collective defence to serve the particular interests of any of the big powers. (b). Abstention by any country from exerting pressures on other countries.
7. Refraining from acts or threats of aggression or the use of force against the territorial integrity or political independence of any country.
8. Settlement of all international disputes by peaceful means, such as negotiation, conciliation, arbitration or judicial settlement as well as other peaceful means of the parties' own choice, in conformity with the Charter of the United Nations.
9. Promotion of mutual interests and co-operation.
10. Respect for justice and international obligations.

In the closing of the Final Communiqué was stated that the Asian-African Conference suggested that the 5 sponsor countries considered convening a meeting, following the Conference. But the attempts to convene the Second Asian-African Conference always faced difficulties. When the Conference was to be convened in Algeria, there was a change in its government. The incident resulted in the delay of the Conference.

However, the Asian-African Conference in Bandung had brought the unity and cooperation between countries in Asia and Africa, either in dealing with international or regional matters. Such a conference for certain groups in Asia Africa were held, among others Conference of Asian-African Journalists, Islamic Conference of Asian-African, Conference of Asian-African Writers, and Conference of Asian-African Students.

The Bandung Spirit with its Ten Principles had changed the international view on international relations. Bandung had also born the Third World-ism or Non-Aligned to the First World Washington, and the Second World Moscow. The Bandung Spirit had also changed the structure of the United Nations. It was not an exclusive forum for West or East.

“May we continue on the way we have taken together and may the Bandung Conference stay as a beacon guiding the future progress of Asia and Africa” (quoted from the last part of the closing speech of the Chair of the Asian-African Conference).

BACKGROUND INFORMATION OF THE ASIAN-AFRICAN SUMMIT 2005 AND THE GOLDEN JUBILEE COMMEMORATION OF THE ASIAN-AFRICAN CONFERENCE 1955

INTRODUCTION

Following the historic Asian-African Conference in Bandung in 1955, the world has witnessed the emergence of new nations in the two continents and the births of a sense of kinship and solidarity between them. This “Bandung Spirit”, brought about by the Conference, subsequently became the underlying inspiration for these new nations to continue to strive towards the attainment of a just, peaceful, progressive and prosperous world order.

Fifty years since that momentous period, the world has yet again witnessed profound changes that have left many countries in Asia and Africa lagging behind in their economic and social development, thus marginalizing a majority of them from benefiting of the opportunities offered by globalizations.

It is with the intention to rekindle the “Bandung Spirit” through enhancing the cooperation between the countries in Asia and Africa that Indonesia and South Africa hosted First Asian-African Sub-Regional Organizations Conference (AASROC I) and Second AASROC (AASROC II) respectively in Bandung, Indonesia, on 29-30 July 2003 and in Durban, South African, on 19-20 August 2004. These events were held as important venues in preparation for the Asian-African Summit in Indonesia on 21-23 April 2005, which will be held in conjunction with the Commemoration of the Golden Jubilee of the 1955 Asian-African Conference. The theme of this Summit, Reinvigorating the Bandung Spirit: Working Towards a New Asian-African Strategic Partnership aptly marks the dawn of a new cooperation among the countries of the two continents as we strive towards a more peaceful and prosperous future.

I. ASIAN-AFRICAN CONFERENCE 1955

The Asian-African Conference (AAC) was convened in Bandung on 18-24 April 1955. The AAC considered problems of common interests and concerns to countries of Asia and Africa and discussed ways and means by which their peoples could achieve fuller economic, cultural and political cooperation. The Leaders of Asia and Africa who participated in the AAC envisioned a world order of independence, peace, justice and common prosperity. They crafted a new ethos to govern the relationship between nations, which was called the Spirit of the Bandung Asian-African Conference of 1955 (the Bandung Spirit).

The Leaders at the AAC declared that nations should practice tolerance and live together in peace with one another as good neighbours, which would effectively maintain and promote international peace and security, while cooperation in the economic, social and cultural field would help bring about the common prosperity and well being of all. This cooperation and partnership should be based on the Ten Principles of Bandung, namely:
49 years after the Conference, in the political fronts, countries in Asia and Africa have achieved significant advancements. Almost all of Asian and African countries today are enjoying greater freedom and sovereignty. In the economic front although some have enjoyed greater prosperity, many of them are still lagging behind in economy, technology, science and knowledge.

II. FIRST ASIAN-AFRICAN SUB-REGIONAL ORGANIZATION CONFERENCE (AASROC I)

Inspired by “the Spirit of Bandung” of the 1955 Asia-Africa Conference, the Governments of Indonesia and South Africa co-hosted the First Asian- African Sub-Regional Organisations Conference (AASROC I) on 29-30 July 2003 in Bandung, Indonesia. This historic event, co-chaired by the Foreign Ministers of South Africa and Indonesia, was the first time ever that Sub-Regional Organisations met to discuss matters of common interest. Delegates from 43 countries, 19 organisations and 28 invited observers attended the Conference, a first since the historic Asia-Africa Conference in Bandung in 1955.

In order to revive the spirit of co-operation between the two continents, AASROC I considered ways and means by which the peoples of the two continents could achieve full economic, cultural, social and political cooperation, and address global challenges facing both continents. As countries in Asia and Africa face new global challenges, AASROC I also realized that in spite of the passing of decades, the relevance of the Spirit of Bandung has not diminished at all. They further believed that the Spirit of Bandung is still relevant to answer the challenges faced by the two regions and to benefit from opportunities that are offered by the new economic and political global circumstances.

The Conference adopted a Co-Chairs’ Statement, which include the agreed on principles for co-operation between Africa and Asia, as the first concrete steps towards forging a New Asian-African Strategic Partnership (NAASP). Furthermore a Working Group was established comprising of volunteering countries from Asia and Africa, as well as representatives from the sub-regional organisations.

The Conference discussed principles on which to develop a New Strategic Partnership, inter alia:

1. The Ten Principles of Bandung of the 1955 Asian-African Conference.
2. Recognition of diversity between and within regions, including different social and economic systems and levels of development.
3. Commitment to open dialogue based on mutual respect and benefit.
4. Co-operation where there is scope for common interest and mutual benefit.
5. Efforts to strengthen complement and build upon existing regional and sub-regional organisations’ initiatives in both regions.
6. Co-operation should be practical and based on comparative advantage and mutual strength.

III. THE AASROC WORKING GROUP MEETING

The AASROC Working Group meeting took place on 24 March 2004 in Durban, South Africa and was attended by the representatives of 19 countries and 10 organisations. This was preceded by an African Consultative Meeting on 23 March 2004, where a common African position was adopted with regard to the development of a new strategic partnership with Asia. This Working Group meeting was held according to the mandate of the AASROC I Conference in preparation for the AASROC II Ministerial Conference.

The Meeting was co-chaired by the Ministers of Foreign Affairs of South Africa and Indonesia and adopted a Co-Chairs Progress Report. The Report has provided further clarity and direction as to the envisaged nature of the NAASP and the steps to be pursued on the way forward.

The Meeting also agreed that there should be an Asian-African Summit level meeting once every 4 years. Asia-Africa Ministers will meet every two years, while sectoral Ministers (such as Agriculture, Health, Trade, Finance, ICT etc.) will meet as required. Expert Working Groups/Sectoral Committee meetings at Ministerial level if necessary and, when possible, on the margins of existing technical meetings in order to limit expenses and time spent away from capitals, will be held as required.

The Meeting further emphasized the pivotal role of the respective Regional and Sub-Regional Organisations. SROs should meet on an annual basis to allow for an exchange of best practices in conjunction with key donors, project managers and investors. The AU will serve as a coordinating focal point for the African RECs in this process. Meanwhile the ASEAN Secretariat and the SADC Secretariat will coordinate the organisation of the first Regional and Sub-regional Organisations meeting.

IV. SECOND ASIAN-AFRICAN SUB-REGIONAL ORGANIZATION CONFERENCE (AASROC II)

AASROC II was held in Durban on 20 August 2004, preceded by a Senior Officials Meeting on 19 August 2004. The Conference was attended by delegates from 81 African and Asian countries and 5 regional and sub-regional organizations from both continents. The Conference was also attended by the representatives of 10 invited observer countries and 6 observer organizations.

The Conference discussed the rationale for establishing a new bridge between Asia and Africa. The rationale is rooted in the current reality and the global challenges facing the two continents. Asian and African countries have made significant political advances, but have not yet attained commensurate progress in the social and economics spheres. Therefore, the Conference concluded that the establishment of a strategic partnership among countries of Africa and Asia is imperative in the context of the achievement of peace, prosperity and progress in the African and Asian regions. The nations of both continents have to begin looking for ways to complement each other's strengths, mitigate each other's weaknesses and develop workable political and economic programms and initiatives that can be introduced and implemented in both regions.

The AASROC II Ministerial Conference confirmed support for the outcomes of AASROC I, as reflected in the Co-Chairs' Statement of 30 July 2003, and expressed satisfaction with the progress of the AASROC Ministerial Working Group, as reported to the Conference in terms of the Co-Chairs' Progress Report of 24 March 2004.

The Conference focused on the following three topics during its deliberations:

1. Contribution of Asian-African Sub-Regional Organizations towards a New Asian-African Strategic Partnership (NAASP).

2. Structures for Cooperation.

3. Levels, time frames and composition of dialogue on the areas of cooperation identified by AASROC I.

The Conference confirmed three broad areas of cooperation, namely: political, economic, and social and cultural cooperation. The Conference noted the importance of issues of peace and stability and the notion of "the culture of peace," which creates an enabling environment for development and economic cooperation. The Conference also identified three tiers of Asian-African interaction i.e. Inter-Governmental Forum, Sub-Regional Organizations and People-to-People interaction (business, academia, civil society).

V. THE ASIAN-AFRICAN SUMMIT 2005

The Co-Chair’s Statement of AASROC I asserted that in conjunction with the Golden Jubilee of the Asian-African Conference, the Asian-African Summit would be convened in Indonesia in 2005. With its theme of “Reinvigorating the Bandung Spirit: Working Towards a New Asian-African Strategic Partnership”, the Summit will launch NAASP, which is intended to bring Asia and Africa toward a better future based on their collective self-reliance and to ensure an enabling international environment for the benefit of the Asian and African peoples.

The Asian-African Summit 2005 will be convened on 22-23 April 2005 at the Jakarta Convention Centre, Jakarta-Indonesia. Whereas the Commemoration of the Golden Jubilee of the Asian-African Conference 1955 will be held on 24 April 2005 at Gedung Merdeka, Bandung-Indonesia.

Prior to the Summit, Indonesia will also host the Asian-African Foreign Ministers’ Meeting on 20 April 2005 and the Asian-African Senior Officials Meeting on 19 April 2005 at the Jakarta Convention Centre, in Jakarta.

Heads of state/government of Asian-African countries will be participating in the Summit, and Indonesia will also invite observers, which include Secretary general/executive director of the Asian-African regional and sub-regional organizations, representatives from observer countries, international organizations, and other invited guests.

Additionally, Indonesia will also hold several events and meetings in conjunction with the Commemoration of the Golden Jubilee of the Asian-African Conference. These events and meetings will include the Asian African Business Summit, the Symposium on Renewable Energy of Asia and Africa, the Workshop on the Role of Women and Youth in furthering Asian-African cooperation, the Trade Fair, and the Asian-African Cultural Event.

 

Source : The Coordinating Ministry for Economic