Sarawak strengthens cooperation with Indonesia through creative industry collaboration
- BT
- 30 minutes ago
- 2 min read
JAKARTA, 5 February 2026: A strategic bilateral meeting was held between the Sarawak delegation and the Ministry of Creative Economy of Indonesia earlier today in Jakarta, in conjunction with Sarawak’s participation in the Jakarta International Handicraft Trade Fair.
The engagement was centered on strengthening cooperation through a creative industry ecosystem approach, recognising that sustainable growth in the sector depends on coordinated roles among government, industry, communities, academia, media, and financial institutions.
The Sarawak delegation was led by Deputy Minister for Tourism, Creative Industry and Performing Arts Sarawak, Datuk Snowdan Lawan. During the engagement, the delegation held discussions with the Director of Marketing System Development and Institutional Relations Bapak Radi Manggala, representing Deputy Minister of the Ministry of Creative Economy of Indonesia, Bapak Cecep Rukendi on advancing collaboration in craft industry development, creative entrepreneurship, and market expansion strategies.
The Sarawak delegation included the CEO of the Sarawak Craft Council, Suriya Charles, Acting CEO of the Sarawak Arts Council, Awang Ikman bin Awang Sepian, Deputy Director of Kuching North City Commission, Rudzaimer Malek, Board Members of the Sarawak Craft Council, Melia Linggi Jugah and Nur Rahmah Ranong and Director of Kraftangan Malaysia (Sarawak), Mohd Fu’ad Ariffin as well as Senior Consul Ibu Lidya Karlina Ndoen and senior officers from the Indonesian Consulate Office in Kuching.
The meeting provided an important platform to strengthen bilateral cooperation in the creative industry, with discussions focusing on craft sector development, creative entrepreneurship, heritage safeguarding and market expansion strategies. Both sides exchanged insights on policies supporting artisans, creative MSMEs and community-based enterprises, particularly in enhancing productivity, digital readiness, and international market access.
A key focus of the dialogue was Indonesia’s community-based Hexahelix approach, which integrates government, industry, communities, academia, media, and financial institutions into a coordinated creative economy ecosystem. Sarawak shared that its current creative industry development model is strongly driven by government agencies, communities, academia, and media, with heritage and community empowerment at its core. The engagement allowed Sarawak to explore pathways to further strengthen the roles of private industry investors and financial institutions, particularly in scaling heritage-based craft sectors and improving access to sustainable financing.
During the meeting, Datuk Snowdan Lawan highlighted Sarawak’s efforts to position heritage-based creative industries as key drivers of inclusive economic growth and sustainable tourism development. Collaboration with Indonesia, a regional leader in creative economy ecosystem development, offers valuable opportunities for knowledge exchange on institutional coordination, creative financing mechanisms, and strategies to elevate traditional crafts from small-scale cultural production into globally competitive creative sectors.
The engagement is expected to contribute towards expanding market access for Sarawak and Indonesian creative products through trade fairs, exhibitions, and business matching initiatives. It also supports the promotion of sustainable, heritage-based creative industries that empower local communities, including women and rural artisans. Both parties expressed mutual interest in exploring future cooperation frameworks that strengthen ecosystem-based collaboration, elevate their creative industries on the global stage, and ensure that cultural heritage, community livelihoods, and innovation remain central to development.
