Australian envoy says RI still a good place for investment
Australian envoy says RI still a good place for investment
Rendi A. Witular, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta
Despite the various problems faced by Indonesia, businesses in
Australia still consider the country to be a strong choice for
business expansion, an envoy said.
The new Australian Ambassador to Indonesia David Ritchie said
on Tuesday that bilateral trade and investment between the two
countries remained very strong, and that Australia was keen to
continue assisting Indonesia in attracting foreign investment.
"I believe that what Indonesia faces at the moment is only the
problem of perception to attract investors back," said Ritchie
during a business luncheon held by the Indonesia-Australia
Business Council.
Currently, there are about 400 Australian companies operating
in Indonesia.
Australia is one of Indonesia's largest foreign investors,
with total investment last year reaching about A$6 billion (Rp
3.1 trillion).
In 2002, total bilateral trade in goods and services was
about A$9 billion, with Indonesia enjoying a trade surplus of
A$1.4 billion.
But Ritchie said that to attract more investment from
Australia, Indonesia had to resolve the concerns of investors,
particularly in the areas of security and the legal and tax
systems.
He said many Australian investors were keen to expand their
businesses here by setting up joint ventures, particularly in the
banking and insurance sectors.
Foreign direct investment approvals here -- excluding those in
the energy and financial sectors -- plummeted by 35 percent to
US$9.7 billion last year from $15.06 billion in 2001. This drop
has been attributed to the above concerns.
Boosting investment is crucial if the country hopes to
generate the kind of sustainable economic growth needed to create
jobs for the millions of people who have been out of work since
the economic crisis struck in 1997.
Relations between Indonesia and Australia have been strained
since the separation of East Timor from Indonesia in 1999, a
contentious issue in which Australia became involved.
Since then there have been efforts to mend ties between the
two countries. However, tension remains as Jakarta has continued
to question the goodwill of Australia in maintaining relations
between the neighbors.
During the luncheon, Ritchie said Australia wanted a stable,
prosperous and united Indonesia because that would in turn
benefit Australian security and business.
He also blamed the media for blowing out of proportion any
problems between the countries.
"Too often we see in the media and elsewhere suggestions that
there are constraints between the two countries .... Don't
believe anything you read in the papers, it is all rubbish,"
Ritchie told the audience.