Bogor, Shenzhen to establish cyber park

Theresia Sufa, The Jakarta Post, Bogor

Visiting Shenzhen deputy mayor of Guangdong province in China, Chen Yingchun, and Bogor mayor Diani Budiarto signed on Wednesday a Letter of Intent (LOI), as an initial agreement between the two cities to establish a cyber park in Bogor.

Diani told the press that the LOI would be followed by a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) between the two cities, which is scheduled to be signed in November.

He said the LOI did not only consist of the commitment of the two cities to develop the cyber park, but also the wish to improve cooperation in various sectors -- business, sciences, technology and education, tourism, sports, and trade.

"The signing of the LOI is evidence of how serious we are about strengthening cooperation," Diani added.

Previously, head of the Bogor Municipal Culture and Tourism Agency Yamin M. Saleh said the cyber park would be developed on nine hectares of land in Mulyaharja, the southern part of Bogor municipality.

He said that the project would be financed with a grant from the Chinese government.

According to Yamin, the cyber park would be an Internet provider for the central government and the regional administrations in a bid to develop an e-government.

"With the project, Bogor will become a center of IT service for offices of central and regional administrations across the country," said Yamin.

Diani also said that the cooperation would cover information exchange, human resources development, software development and market development of information technology products.

With the presence of the cyber park, Bogor is expected to become a center of information-communication technology, which will supply various computer components, including software to other regional administrations, he added.