Jakarta (ANTARA) - Religious Affairs Minister Yaqut Cholil Qoumas received a visit from the Jordanian Ambassador to Indonesia, Sudqi Attalah Al Omoush, to discuss bilateral cooperation to encourage Indonesian students to study in Jordan.
Qoumas told the ambassador that Indonesian students do not have sufficient knowledge of education in Jordan, suggesting that incentives are needed to attract Indonesian students to Jordan, such as easy visa applications.
"Currently, Indonesian students have no perspectives about studying in Jordan. If Jordan can offer easy visas for Indonesian students, I think it will be a good attraction for them," the minister said in a statement released by his office on Monday.
He added that, to support the idea, the Directorate of Islamic Education within his ministry will develop promotional materials to encourage pursuing education in Jordan.
"I hope the number of our students studying in Jordan will increase," the minister said.
Ambassador Al Omoush welcomed the proposal to ease visas for Indonesian students.
"Regarding visas, God willing, there will be no problems and we will treat Indonesian children as our children," he remarked.
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He said that the Jordanian Ministry of Higher Education is also looking forward to an increase in the number of students from Indonesia pursuing their studies at universities in Jordan.
"We hope to make an agreement (with Indonesia). The Jordanian Ministry of Higher Education can also send its team to conduct socialization about education in Jordan. We will be very happy if an MoU (memorandum of understanding) can be signed between Indonesia and Jordan," he added.
He explained that the lecture system in Jordan is similar to Indonesia and offers Semester Credit Units (SKS) to make the duration of study more measurable and help students graduate on time.