Indonesian Ambassador to Zimbabwe, Mr Dewa Juniarta Sastrawan, yesterday led three legislators from his country on a tour of the Museum of African Liberation in Harare, where they commended the efforts being made to record African history and to conserve artifacts of the continent's liberation struggle.
The visit by legislators Achmad Tohir, Darul Siska and Muhammad Asrian Mirza is part of the two countries' efforts to establish deeper economic cooperation.
Indonesia is a rising economic giant with the world's fourth largest population of around 275 million people.
The country has the largest economy in its region and is classified as a newly industrialised country. It is the world's 16th largest economy by nominal gross domestic product and 7th in terms of GDP at purchasing power parity, estimated to be US$1,417 trillion nominally and US$4,393 trillion at purchasing power parity.
It achieved independence from the Dutch after the Second World War.
Speaking after the tour, Amb Sastrawan said that Zimbabwe and Indonesia shared the same history since the large scale Asian-African Bandung Conference, which resulted in the formulation of the 10 principles that guided the liberation struggles of all oppressed countries during colonialism.
"This highlights how Asian countries have cordial relations with Africa and most importantly, Zimbabwe, and we therefore would like to not only be friends, but development partners for Zimbabwe," he said.
Zimbabwe hosted the 8th Summit of the Non-Aligned Movement (NAM) in 1986 of which Indonesia was one of its founding countries, which gave birth to the Bandung Principles as the precursor to the formation of the movement.
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The Indonesian delegation expressed keenness in partnering Zimbabwe in economic and infrastructural development, with the Museum of African Liberation being a major starting point.
"As an emblem of our shared history, we would like to support and be engaged with the development of the museum and this is the very beginning, as we are looking towards much more deeper and enhanced cooperation," said Amb Sastrawan.
The delegates expressed interest in being part of the rich history connected with the country and vowed to seek a place to raise their national flag at the museum, alongside African states.
Institute of African Knowledge chief executive Ambassador Kwame Muzawazi said that the incorporation of Indonesia into the museum was paramount in the context of its past history with Africa and Zimbabwe.
"We really want to thank the Indonesian government, the parliament of Indonesia as well as the Government of Zimbabwe, through the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Trade, for facilitating this trip and Your Excellency, we really want to thank you for the artefact donated to the museum.
"We look forward to Zimbabwe and Indonesia partnering on the Museum of African Liberation," said Amb Muzawazi.
The Second Republic has been unrelenting in its diplomatic offensive, which is bearing fruit in terms of engagement and re-engagement.
