Wednesday, 20 August, 2008 | 11:51 WIB TEMPO Interactive, Jakarta: The National Association of Indonesian Consultants (INKINDO) has suggested that provincial governments arrange trading company and skill standards for foreign consultants working in Indonesia. “We have submitted the suggestions,” said Bambang Wikanta, chairman of INKINDO’s Regional Representative Council for Jakarta, on Tuesday (19/8).

Wednesday, 20 August, 2008 | 11:53 WIB TEMPO Interactive, Jakarta: South Africa Synthetic Oil Liquefaction (SASOL) Synfuels International, a synthetic fuel company from South Africa, is interested in managing coal liquefaction in South Sumatra. The project will be the first for liquefying the coal to produce fuel in Indonesia.

correct. small annoucement last week (http://jakchat.com/forums/ubbthreads.php/topics/84344/ANT_Hutchinson_invests_US_1_bl#Post84344) this article from the ministry of trade adds details to that story.

Golden Agri-Resources Ltd., a unit of Indonesia's largest oil-palm grower, Sinar Mas Group, said second-quarter profit more than doubled as prices and production gained, Bloomberg reported. Net income rose to $582 million in the three months to June 30, or 6 cents a share, compared with $228 million, or 2 cents a share, a year earlier, Singapore-based Golden Agri said in a statement to the stock exchange. Sales doubled to $817 million. Golden Agri and rival growers such as IOI Corp.

PT Hutchinson CP Telecom Indonesia, operator of the '3' brand cellular service, has invested $1 billion in the development of its telecommunications facilities in Indonesia, Asia Pulse reported. "We plan to become the biggest operator in Indonesia next year," marketing director of Hutchinson Suresh Reddy said. He said Indonesia is an important market for Hutchinson, especially with its population now reaching more than 230 million.

Indonesia may be able to double its current annual cocoa production to 1 million metric tons in the next five years as steps are taken to rejuvenate existing plantations, a senior industry official said, Dow Jones reported. The cocoa plantation rehabilitation scheme is slated for completion by 2011, and it is possible that production will reach one million tons of cocoa by 2013, said Litha Brent, vice chairman of the Association of Indonesian Coffee Exporters.

South Korean, Vietnamese and Chinese shoemakers are reported to be planning to set up shop in Indonesia, boosting an industry that already makes some $400 million in export earnings. "All the companies have already obtained principle licenses from the Investment Coordinating Board," Eddy Widjanarko, chairman of the Indonesian Shoemakers Association, told reporters at the Ministry of Industry.

The growth rate of the economy, which the Central Agency of Statistics (BPS) said reached 6.39% in the second quarter, can be maintained throughout the year, Coordinating Minister for Economic Affairs Sri Mulyani Indrawati told a press conference on Friday. She said that despite a declining global economy, Indonesia continued to produce strong growth figures. The second quarter figure demonstrated that the economy had grown more than 6% for the past eight quarters.

exactly. which asks the question: do indonesians *really* want their country to be just like the west? isn't that what many of us here in jakchat were trying to escape from?

you're way too optimistic. culture underlies much behaviour, and elements of indonesian culture itself supports and maintains what westerners view as corruption. creating a "clean", merit-based bureaucracy in indonesia requires a culture shift. you can change many things about people, but changing an individual's culture is like changing his/her skin colour.

Bring it on ..... Hire a very good change management team to train and develop the people. Sure there will be the currupt people who will take no notice but there will also be a few who are as tired of the curruption as most other people. They are the ones that you fast track through the system while you terminate the people who refuse to change.