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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