Jakarta,     - Indonesia and Japan on Wednesday  discussed new bilateral cooperation in the Information and Technology (IT) sector, especially their use in  disaster-management.

     "We hope both countries can cooperate more in the procurement of adequate technology to tackle climate change and natural disasters in Indonesia, especially for early warning systems,"  Communication and Information Minister Tifatul Sembiring said  after a meeting with Japan's State Secretary for Internal Affairs and Communications, Masamitsu Naito.

     Tifatul said Japan as one of the countries in the world prone to natural disasters had more developed technology to tackle such happenings that he expected the latter could share it with Indonesia.

     The minister added Indonesia and Japan could also cooperate in other potential IT projects such as the Palapa Ring mega project where the government intended to set up telephone lines in 31,000 villages and internet connections in 10,000 villages in Indonesia.

     On the same occasion, Japan's State Secretary for Internal Affairs and Communications, Masamitsu Naito, stated his appreciation about  Wednesday's ( ) discussion with Indonesian authorities about  future cooperation in the  IT sector.

     "I expect further discussions between Indonesia and Japan's representatives about  concrete cooperation in the IT sector. I also suggest that related authorities from both countries arrange meetings with private parties as  investors in the projects," said Naito.

-Antara, 07 January 2010-