JAKARTA: Indonesia is in talks with the King Salman Global Academy for Arabic Language to expand the reach of Indonesian literature in the Kingdom and attract more Saudis to study at its university, Jakarta’s mission in Riyadh said on Thursday.    

Arabic is an important language among Indonesian Muslims, who comprise over 80 percent of the country’s 270 million population. Most of Indonesia’s thousands of public and private universities facilitate Arabic as a foreign language and offer Arabic studies in their programs.   

Indonesian Ambassador to Saudi Arabia Dr. Abdul Aziz Ahmad discussed cooperation with KSAA Secretary-General Abdullah bin Saleh Al-Washmi in July.  

“Cooperation with KSAA is very strategic,” Badrus Sholeh, the education and cultural attaché at the Indonesian Embassy in Riyadh, told Arab News on Thursday.  

“(There are) very limited publications in Arabic about Indonesia. KSAA will help Indonesia to publish the economy, education, science and technology publications by Indonesian universities and state and private companies in Arabic through translation cooperation.” 

Many Indonesians are already contributing to Arabic programs in universities and Islamic schools across the country, but further training “will strengthen their contribution in Indonesia,” Sholeh said.  

As Indonesia is also working to attract more Saudi students to learn at its universities, Sholeh said cooperation with KSAA will help bridge the language gap.   

“Cooperation will also work at the level of researchers and lecturers (with) KSAA focused on Arabic teachings,” Sholeh said.  

“Indonesian universities will attract Saudi students to learn science and technology, as well as social sciences.”