Indonesian government targets 7 million of foreign tourists in 2010, an increase from this year's estimation of 6.4 million, an official said on Tuesday. Ministry of Culture and Tourism's Director General of Marketing Sapta Nirwandar said that the government also targeted US$7.5 billion of foreign exchange from tourism in 2010.

TEMPO Interactive, Jakarta: Tangerang Immigration office said it will conduct inspection and checks on foreign workers in the region to put their presence in order in line with the regulation, suggesting foreign workers to renew their expired or nearly expired working license. Head of the Tangerang Immigration Office Pondang Tambunan said there are 4,500 foreigners registered in the region, around 100 were holding five year stay permit and the remaining were holding one year permit.

The government has repeatedly said building infrastructure will be key to its new economic policy when President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono begins his second five-year term in office next week. But what else is new, one might validly ask. “The difference is that this time we will address the question of how decisions are being made,” economist Chatib Basrie told a dinner hosted by Bank Permata Monday.

The government will start to implement a single sign-on and a single submission for businessmen with real time data early next year. NSW technical team chief Susiwiyono Mugiharso said Monday the single sign-on and single submission systems were part of the next government’s first 100 days of work. “Hopefully, we can pursue [the implementation] within 100 days.

TEMPO Interactive, Jakarta:Indonesia is planning to double textile exports to Japan. “Increase in export values is expected to be achieved within five years,” said Metal, Machinery, and Textile director-general, Ansari Bukhari, last week. Ansari said that in the first semester of 2009, Indonesian textile exports were valued at US$ 260 million. “The value decreased by 26 percent compared to the same period last year,” he added.

Cinema operator Blitzmegaplex on Monday urged the Business Competition Supervisory Commission to take further action in response to a report Blitz submitted in June alleging that cinema giant Group 21 had monopoly control of domestic film distribution. “The legal action should end unfair business competition in the country’s film industry,” Todung Mulya Lubis, a lawyer for Blitzmegaplex, told the Jakarta Globe.

The Ministry of Industry expects sectors excluding tourism and oil and gas to increase their contribution to gross domestic product to 28.6 percent in 2015 and to 31.2 percent by 2020, up from 25.7 percent forecast for this year. But the way forward will have to be supported by sweeping changes. The gains should drive up the country’s per capita GDP from the current $2,271 to $3,961 by 2020, which may qualify Indonesia as a developed country, the ministry said.

Investors have long complained about the numerous obstacles to investing in infrastructure projects in Indonesia. Bambang Susantono, a deputy minister in charge of infrastructure development at the Coordinating Ministry for Economic Affairs, spoke with the Jakarta Globe about plans to attract investors to the neglected sector. Here are some excerpts from the interview: Several months ago you said infrastructure development in this country faced a financing challenge because of tight liquidity.