Madagascar's president says his meeting with Indonesian president fruitful

Madagascar's president Hery Rajaonarimampianina said on Thursday that his meeting with Indonesian president Joko Widodo was "fruitful", a statement from the presidency said.

"My meeting with the Indonesian president resulted fruitful cooperation for Madagascar," Hery said at the end of his meeting with Joko Widodo in Jakarta.

During the meeting, several areas including agriculture, industry, trade, transport, tourism and aviation were discussed.

An airline linking Madagascar's capital of Antananarivo to the Indonesian capital Jakarta will be set up soon, Hery said.

A new Embassy of Madagascar will be installed in Indonesia, he added.

Scholarships for Malagasy students have already been allocated by the Indonesian government, president Hery said.

"The most important that we talked about concerns technological exchanges in mineral resources, including oil and heavy oil," the president added.

Indonesia is an example to follow in term of development because their advanced technology is exceptional in Southeast Asia, he said.

Madagascar's president was surprised when he saw a stand that shows the production of Antemoro paper. History always showed that the origin of Malagasy people also comes from Sumatra and Indonesian islands.

Madagascar's president is in Indonesia since Tuesday to attend the Afro-Asian Summit in Jakarta. Endi