Antara News, Tuesday, December 7, 2010
Jakarta (ANTARA News) - An exhibition dubbed Blue Revolution Expo 2010 was opened here Tuesday with the purpose of showcasing Indonesia`s rich marine resources that have yet to developed optimally.
"It is hoped that this expo will open our eyes to the enormous wealth that lies in our seas, and convince us that we should be prepared to make greater investments in our marine resources." Martani Huseini, director general of fishery product processing and marketing at the Marine Resources and Fisheries Ministry, said at the expo`s opening.
He said as reflected in the allocation of development funds in the State Budget, Indonesia was until now wedded to a paradigm that prioritized development of its terrestrial resources whereas two thirds of its territory consisted of water.
Therefore, he said, the Marine Resources and Fisheries Minsitry and a number of private companies were now working hard to change the prevailing paradigm by among other things holding the expo on the country`s marine resources.
The phrase "blue revolution" in the expo`s name was intended to argue that the need for a revolution in the marine and fisheries sector was as relevant as the "green revolution" in agriculture and the "black revolution" in the mining sector, he said.
"Especially because this blue revolution can bring prosperity to Indonesia," he said.
Martani said a professor from Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) had ever told him that Indonesia actually had rich marine biota which could be of great benefit to the country if they were well maintained and properly developed.
Therefore, he said, the ministry wanted the Indonesian public to gain a better and more comprehensive understanding of the country`s marine resources and one of its efforts was sponsoring the Blue Revolution Expo which run until December 10 at the Jakarta Convention Center (JCC).
