Australia, RI tie up joint growth zone
Australia, RI tie up joint growth zone
JAKARTA (JP): Indonesia and Australia agreed yesterday to
develop a zone of sub-regional economic cooperation linking
Indonesia's eastern provinces and the Australian continent.
Ministers from both countries, participating in the third
Australia-Indonesia ministerial forum, said the Australia-
Indonesia Development Area (AIDA) would be mutually beneficial.
"It is symbolically important to us because it brings
Australia for the first time ever into a sub-regional arrangement
in the Southeast Asian region," Australian Foreign Minister
Alexander Downer said yesterday.
He said AIDA would give Australia economic opportunities,
especially in Indonesia's eastern provinces.
Australia is already an active exporter to eastern Indonesia.
It exports about A$200 million (US$158.7 million) worth of goods
a year to PT Freeport Indonesia in Irian Jaya.
Australia exported US$1.4 billion worth of goods to Indonesia
last year, while its imports from Indonesia were worth $900
million.
Indonesian Coordinating Minister for Production and
Distribution Hartarto Sastrosoenarto said AIDA would especially
benefit Indonesia's eastern provinces.
"We have many things to offer in Indonesia's eastern
provinces, including tourism, agriculture and manufacturing
industries. And the government will try its best to help the
private sector participate in this sub-regional growth area,"
Hartarto said after the forum.
Nine Indonesian ministers, led by Hartarto, and six Australian
ministers, led by Downer, took part in the forum.
Indonesian Minister of Foreign Affairs Ali Alatas said AIDA
completed Indonesia's program to forge special economic zones
with neighboring countries.
"We should see this as the completion of ASEAN's development
of sub-regional cooperation," he said.
ASEAN
Indonesia is engaged in three sub-regional growth zones within
the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN). Brunei,
Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand and
Vietnam make up ASEAN.
One of the growth zones covers southern Thailand, Indonesia's
Aceh and North Sumatra and Penang in Malaysia. Another zone
covers Singapore, the Malaysian state of Johor and Indonesia's
Riau province. The third zone covers the southern Philippines,
Brunei, the eastern Malaysian states of Sabah and Sarawak and the
Indonesian provinces of Kalimantan and Sulawesi.
"Now we have completed the process by including eastern
Indonesia with Australia," Alatas said.
Australia and Indonesia agreed Wednesday to see if it was
possible to set up a joint regional airline to serve and support
AIDA.
But Indonesian Minister of Transportation Haryanto Dhanutirto
has opposed the idea, saying the airline proposal is unrealistic.
"That's not feasible. Moreover, the Indonesian government will
not license any new scheduled passenger airlines, unless they are
for cargo services."
"It's better that the airlines of Indonesia and Australia work
together to service tourists in both countries," Haryanto said.
There are six scheduled airlines in Indonesia: Garuda,
Merpati, Sempati, Bouraq, Mandala and Dirgantara. Three of the
airlines, Sempati, Garuda and Merpati, fly to Australia. Three
Australian airlines, Qantas, Ansett and National Jet System, fly
to Indonesia.
The two-day forum closed yesterday with a final accord on
transportation cooperation signed by Minister Haryanto and his
counterpart John Sharp.
The accord covers cooperation in transportation and human
resources development.
The two countries reached several agreements at the forum,
including a renewed memorandum on manpower development, a
memorandum on tourism training and an umbrella agreement on
university mobility in Asia and the Pacific.
They also concluded an action plan on health and signed a
statement of intent on joint efforts to reduce greenhouse gas
emissions.
The two countries also agreed to cooperate under a program
called the Year of Partnership 2000 for Olympic Games.
Sydney will host the Olympic Games in 2000. Indonesia wants to
attract some of the travelers going to Australia for the games.
The Indonesia-Australia Ministerial Forum was set up by
Australia's former prime minister Paul Keating and President
Soeharto in 1992. The first ministerial forum was held in Jakarta
in 1992 and the second in Canberra in 1994. (rid/icn)
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