Jakarta (ANTARA) - Indonesia, in the span of 78 years, has braved various challenges and trials through the spirit of gotong royong, or mutual cooperation, President Joko Widodo (Jokowi) stated here on Thursday.
"It has been 78 years since the heroes and founders of the nation delivered the Indonesian people to the gate of independence, with ideals that have not changed to this day, that is making Indonesia independent, united, sovereign, just, and prosperous," Jokowi remarked.
As cited from his Instagram account @jokowi, the president noted that owing to the cooperation of all parties, the country can withstand various challenges and trials successfully.
"In that span of 78 years, Indonesia has gone through various challenges and trials which we were able to pass, thanks to the spirit of gotong royong, which is the nature of this nation," he stated.
According to the head of state, the nation is strong when united but collapses when divided.
The president stated that Indonesia is currently preparing to face new challenges amid increasingly fierce global competition.
In addition, Indonesia will reach the peak of demographic bonus in 2030, when more than half of its population is of the productive age.
With early and meticulous preparations, Jokowi is optimistic that the nation would be able to benefit optimally from the demographic bonus in order to bring Indonesia to become an advanced country.
"The opportunity (to be a developed country) will only come once, it will not happen again, so we need to be prepared from today. Happy Birthday, Republic of Indonesia," Jokowi stated.
On the occasion of Independence Day, President Jokowi uploaded an animated video showing Indonesia's proclamation of independence from time to time until the current era, which demonstrates that the country has been independent along with its development.
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