Jakarta: Malaysia aims to explore more collaboration opportunities with Indonesian radio broadcasters and film industry players to expand and promote the culture of both nations. Deputy Communications Minister Teo Nie Ching emphasized that these collaborations between national agencies, Radio Republik Indonesia (RRI) and Radio Televisyen Malaysia (RTM), which are celebrating their 81st and 80th anniversaries respectively, would benefit the people of the two neighboring countries.
According to BERNAMA News Agency, Teo expressed that Malaysia and Indonesia share the same culture and language, presenting numerous opportunities for content collaboration, encompassing cultural content and news. She discussed this during an interview with RRI anchor Risty Rustarto on the Satu Udara, Dua Negara: The Power of Relay program in Jakarta, which was also broadcast on RTM's Nasional FM. Teo also highlighted the strong ties between Indonesian President Prabowo Subianto and Malaysian Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim, which should extend beyond government relations to foster stronger people-to-people engagement.
Teo is currently on a three-day working visit to Jakarta for the National Press Day 2026 celebrations. During her visit, she revealed Malaysia's idea for film collaboration with Indonesia. She had conveyed this idea to the Indonesian cultural minister's representative, Giring Ganesha, during a meeting. Joining her at that meeting was FINAS chief executive officer Datuk Azmir Saifuddin Mutalib. They discussed developing a 'Malay storyboard' initiative to train young film producers from both countries to create films centered on their shared Malay culture. The aim is to jointly produce a film, with productions targeted to begin this year.
Earlier, during a visit to RRI in Jakarta, Teo confirmed that RTM and RRI would intensify content and cross-cultural radio program collaborations. This includes reviving dormant initiatives such as Salam Serumpun and Hubungan Muhibbah, and pushing for more frequent, ideally weekly, collaborations. She mentioned that further cooperation could include content sharing, joint news production, and training programs.
The meeting was also attended by RRI president director Ignatius Hendrasmo, Malaysian National News Agency (Bernama) chief executive officer Datin Paduka Nur-ul Afida Kamaludin, editor-in-chief Arul Rajoo Durar Raj, deputy editor-in-chief (News Services) Mohd Shukri Ishak, and RTM deputy director-general (Strategic) Hamzah Ishak.