Jakarta (ANTARA) – Indonesia’s plan to develop about 1,500 fishing vessels under the Maritime Partnership Programme (MPP) with the United Kingdom is still in an early stage, focusing on financing options, an Indonesian minister said.Speaking after meeting with President Prabowo Subianto in Jakarta on Tuesday, Marine Affairs and Fisheries Minister Sakti Wahyu Trenggono stressed that implementation would take time, as it requires cross-ministerial planning and administrative processes.He explained that financing matters would be handled first by the Ministry of National Development Planning, and then by the Finance Ministry.Trenggono added that the Ministry of Marine Affairs and Fisheries (KPP) would then translate the plan into a concrete project once financing is finalized.Beyond financing, he noted that the KKP had launched an analysis to assess the readiness of Indonesia’s shipbuilding industry to support the MPP.He expressed hope that preparations could be completed promptly to align with the two-year timeline of the bilateral partnership.The Indonesian and British governments sealed the maritime cooperation deal during President Prabowo’s visit to London last January.Following a meeting with British Prime Minister Keir Starmer, the president announced that the UK had agreed to assist Indonesia in enhancing naval capacity and building 1,500 fishing vessels to strengthen food security.“They will support our plan to build 1,500 fishing vessels, because we want to invest in this on a massive scale,” Prabowo told the press at Lancaster House, London, on January 20.He asserted that equipping Indonesian fishermen with more reliable ships is key to boosting fish catches and raising protein consumption levels among the population.”We are very satisfied with the maritime partnership. I believe it will be an important part of the development of our maritime economy,” he added.The following day, Cabinet Secretary Teddy Indra Wijaya said that the government envisions the bilateral shipbuilding initiative generating around 600,000 jobs nationwide.