Trade Minister Muhammad Lutfi said Indonesia would continue trade reforms to be more integrated into the world economy. Indonesia will also support a more open economy, and conduct fair and mutually beneficial trade to gain a better market. He conveyed this in the 'Trade, Tourism, and Investment Forum Reviving Global Trade through Strengthening Regional Economic Partnership' event, Thursday (21/10). This event is part of the 36th Digital Edition Trade Expo Indonesia (TEI) with the theme 'Reviving Global Trade'. Lutfi hopes that this forum can bring new ideas related to various things, especially in the trade sector. "It is hoped that this forum can generate discussions on challenges, opportunities, and ideas in the global trade, tourism and investment sectors. It is also hoped that this forum can provide the latest policy developments, information and strategies for the three sectors," said Lutfi in a written statement, Friday (10/22/2021). According to Lutfi, policy coherence between trade, investment and industrial estates will benefit the world, particularly in terms of economic recovery and development. "Trade and investment embedded in global and regional value chains is a powerful tool for increasing industrialization, growth, and creating sustainable conditions, especially after the COVID-19 pandemic," he said.
Lutfi said Indonesia will ensure international trade and investment can contribute effectively to the global economic recovery. One of them is through bilateral and regional negotiations. "Indonesia will continue to negotiate trade agreements with the same mind, both large and small countries, in an effort to better position it in the global value chain. Currently, the Ministry of Trade is in the process of negotiating 23 bilateral and regional trade agreements," he explained. On the other hand, Investment Minister Bahlil Lahadalia explained that based on data from the Central Statistics Agency (BPS), consumption and investment contributed the most to economic growth. Judging from the development of the survey results, he said that consumption was in a stagnant condition so that Indonesia only needed to encourage investment. Related to this, he continued, collaboration between agencies is needed in accelerating. He said there are three strategies to encourage investment, namely downstreaming, incentives and the provision of alternative industrial estates, as well as granting special rights in the form of incentives for investors who invest outside Java. "For downstreaming, such as nickel and exploring other commodities, it is still necessary to enter an industry with at least 70 percent added value to Indonesia. Meanwhile, for industrial area incentives, such as in Batam, land is definitely cheaper and permits will be handled by the government," he said.
Meanwhile, Minister of Tourism and Creative Economy Sandiaga Salahuddin Uno explained that the COVID-19 pandemic had also hit the tourism sector and the world's creative economy. He said, foreign tourist visits to Indonesia fell 80 percent and Indonesia's creative economy grew minus. Plus, the pandemic is changing travel styles. In this case, people tend to travel based on hygiene, low mobility, few crowds, and minimal touch. "For this reason, the Ministry of Tourism and Creative Economy applies a fundamental strategy including innovation, adaptation, and collaboration. Not only to survive, but also to boost recovery to rebuild Indonesia better," said Sandi. Sandi is optimistic that Indonesia's tourism and creative economy will recover and grow. Currently, his party is also developing super priority destinations to attract tourists while growing the local community's creative economy. "There are several incentives in the tourism sector, such as tax relief and exemption from import duties. It is hoped that investors can develop profitable businesses and can develop Indonesian tourism," said Sandi. In line with Lutfi, the World Bank's Managing Director of Policy Development and Partnership Mari Elka Pangestu explained that the World Bank projects economic growth of 6.7 percent in 2022. In general, East Asia shows improvement, namely countries whose markets are more tightly integrated in the global value chain will recover. Faster "Keeping the market open, diversifying market access, and diversifying products must be Indonesia's strategy," said Mari.
Meanwhile, Singapore's Minister of Trade and Industry Gan Kim Yong said that the long-term cooperation between Indonesia and Singapore was supported by strong economic cooperation. He hopes that bilateral relations and the Indonesia-Singapore economy can continue to run. "We hope to continue to cooperate with Indonesia to strengthen regional and multilateral institutions, including ASEAN and the WTO. Thus, they can support our economic growth and improve the living standards of our people," he said. The Secretary of the Philippine Department of Trade and Industry, Ramon M Lopez, said the same thing. He said that Indonesia and the Philippines have similar values and cultures, thus encouraging collaboration in the fields of e-commerce, digital economy, and halal. According to Lopez, the Philippine government is committed to a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with Indonesia on investment promotion cooperation signed in 2020. The contents of the MoU include the exchange of information, such as policies, regulations, and investment licensing procedures, investment opportunities in both countries, as well as investment realization. foreign. "Come on, let's build a more vibrant and responsive economic partnership together," Lopez said. On the same occasion, Plt.
The Deputy for Coordination of International Economic Cooperation at the Coordinating Ministry for Economic Affairs, Edi Prio Pambudi, highlighted the impact of the PPKM policy which is thought to be temporary. This is reflected in manufacturing activity which began to swell in August 2021. One of them is exports which continue to run and record a surplus. This condition, continued Edi, indicates that the economic recovery and handling of the COVID-19 pandemic are in balance. "According to the Nikkei COVID-19 Recovery Index as of September 2021, Indonesia recorded a score of 54.5. This score is the highest in Southeast Asia. In July 2021, Indonesia's score was ranked 92. The index score is an accumulation of three categories key areas that include infection management, vaccine delivery, and mobility. The higher the ranking, the closer the country is to the COVID-19 recovery process," he explained. Meanwhile, Kadin Deputy General Chair for International Relations Shinta W Kamdani hopes that TEI 2021 can be used as a forum for connecting, trading, investing and collaborating. In this case, Kadin Indonesia will facilitate contact with the business community. "As the G20 Presidency, Indonesia will collaborate with G20 member countries to re-open the economy to be better than it is today. We also ensure that the economy will become stronger after the pandemic, more innovative, and sustainable for all countries," concluded Shinta.
