The recent revelation that a small but growing number of Indonesian students are studying in Israel – a country with which Indonesia has no formal diplomatic ties – has stirred domestic debate about the credibility of Jakarta’s long-standing support for the Palestinian cause.
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There are currently 200 Indonesians studying agriculture at the Arava International Centre for Agricultural Training (AICAT) in Israel’s southern Negev desert, according to a report published last week by Albalad.co, an Indonesian news outlet focused on Middle East affairs. The report, citing an anonymous source, said the figure was a sharp increase from last year’s intake of “around 90” students.
While Indonesia routinely condemns engagement with Israel on political grounds, student exchanges in niche sectors such as agriculture have quietly continued and even gained some domestic political support.
Established in 1994, AICAT offers an 11-month diploma course in advanced and sustainable farming practices tailored to arid climates. Its website lists more than 20,000 alumni from Asian and African countries, including Cabo Verde, formerly known as Cape Verde, Cambodia, Thailand and East Timor.
Cooperation with Indonesia began in 2014, according to AICAT, which noted that since Israel had no diplomatic presence in the Southeast Asian country, student visas were processed through the Israeli embassy in Singapore.
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In addition to AICAT, Indonesian students have also enrolled at other Israeli institutions, including Technion and Tel Aviv University. In 2022, the International University of Papua – then just formed – signed a memorandum of understanding with Israel’s Ariel University to establish cultural and educational cooperation. According to a statement on Ariel’s website, it was the “first academic accord between Indonesia and Israel”.