House Boosts Bilateral Cooperation Following Sri Lanka Ambassador Visit

RRI.CO.ID, Jakarta – Chairman of the Inter-Parliamentary Cooperation Agency (BKSAP) at Indonesia's House of Representatives (DPR), Syahrul Aidi Maazat, revealed that diplomatic relations between Indonesia and Sri Lanka have been running very well for more than 20 years. At the same time, Sri Lankan Ambassador, Sashikala Premawardhane, during his visit to the DPR in Jakarta on Monday, August 31, 2026, expressed his commitment to strengthening inter-Parliamentary cooperation through optimizing the bilateral cooperation group.

"Sri Lanka has even prepared the names of its parliamentarians for the group. In our own parliament, we need to immediately reorganize and complete the member data to fill the existing vacancies," Syahrul said after a courtesy call with the ambassador, as quoted from dpr.go.id.

In addition to strengthening parliamentary relations, Syahrul said that there is a push to reactivate the search and rescue cooperation framework between Indonesia, Australia, and Sri Lanka, which has also been coordinated with the DPR via its partnership with the National Search and Rescue Agency (Basarnas).

Furthermore, Syahrul affirmed the strong historical and cultural potential between the two countries, given that Sri Lanka has an estimated 50,000 Malay-Javanese community. This emotional bond is expected to provide a solid foundation for expanding cooperation in various key sectors, such as the economy, defense, education, and culture.

Responding to questions about specific sectors of primary focus, Syahrul emphasized that economic cooperation remains a highly anticipated priority due to its direct impact on public welfare. One of Indonesia's leading commodities with bright prospects in the Sri Lankan market is betel nut.

On the other hand, Syahrul revealed that the betel nut consumption market in South Asia, such as India, Sri Lanka, and Pakistan, is known to be very high. However, distribution and trade channels are often through third parties or monopolized by certain markets.

Therefore, by establishing direct trade relations with Sri Lanka, Syahrul hopes that the selling price of areca nut commodities from Indonesia can become more competitive. Thus, it could provide maximum benefits for local farmers across the nation.

"What products can we send to Sri Lanka? For example, we have betel nuts. India, Sri Lanka, and Pakistan all consume betel nuts. And so far, India has had a monopoly. If we send them directly to Sri Lanka, the price could be higher," Syahrul conveyed.