For REGENCY PROFILE/July 23, 2002

For REGENCY PROFILE/July 23, 2002

Main story

Ready to welcome investors, buyers and tourists

Regional autonomy, introduced to the country two years ago,
has waken up most regency administrations from their long sleeps.

Bantul regency, one of several regencies in the Special
Province of Yogyakarta, is no exception. Regional autonomy and
political reform have colored many aspects of people's lives in
Bantul.

The regency head, or regent, and his deputy were, for example,
among the first of the country's regents elected shortly after
the implementation of regional autonomy which gives the people
the power to choose their own leaders and manage their own
economy and natural resources.

In regard to the economy, Bantul regency has initiated a
number of projects in an effort to further improve the welfare of
its people.

The Bantul Satellite City, or BKM, is one such project. The
township will be established in stages, and will occupy several
zones in Krebet hamlet, Sendangsari village, Pajangan district.

PT BKM, which manages this satellite city, will provide only
the land, which will be sold to the public, businesspeople and
educational institutions. The company will invite investors to
carry out construction on the land.

The land designated for this satellite city covers about 1,200
hectares, most of which are still owned by local residents. About
250 hectares of the land has been cleared to pave the way for
construction of the first stage of the project.

The company has spent about Rp 80 billion (about US$9.45
million) for the clearance of the land, which has been offered to
various institutions and companies.

Today, the project is drawing quite a lot of interest. Many
companies and private universities in Yogyakarta have placed
their orders thanks to the strong support from the governor of
Yogyakarta, Sri Sultan Hamengkubuwono X.

The second assistant to the Bantul regent, Gendut Sudarto,
said BKM is jointly managed by PT BKM, a limited liability
company established by the Bantul regency administration, and PT
Perwita Karya as the investor. The capital is expected to be made
available from the sales of the company's shares to the regency
administration, investors and financial institutions.

PT BKM has hired the Jakarta-based PT KIAT property consulting
company, which has been involved in the development of the
country's top residential areas, including Ancol and Bumi Serpong
Damai in Jakarta.

With a well thought out plan, it is expected that BKM will
become a center of business for the people of Bantul in
particular, and the people of Yogyakarta in general.

According to the master plan, BKM will be divided into zones
for specific purposes, such as business, residence, education,
sports and so forth.

The residential areas will be further divided into several
categories: luxury, modest, low-cost and lower-cost. The
businesses on the this estate will be confined to environmentally
friendly companies, such as those dealing in packing, warehousing
and electronics.

To ensure that this satellite city will be well regulated, a
regional regulation will be issued on the detailed plan for the
spatial layout of the development in Pajangan district.

Land clearance must gain the approval of all the locals
concerned, while the construction of houses must comply with
existing regulations. Besides, the Bantul regency administration
has also set up an advocacy team comprising all relevant parties
in the regency to monitor the project.

"Although the clearance of land for the BKM does not involve
compulsion, locals must comply with the BKM master plan when
constructing their houses. Luckily, until now all locals have
agreed to sell their land for this purpose," said Sudarto.

The establishment of this satellite city is expected to
provide lots of employment opportunities for the people of
Bantul, particularly those in the Pajangan and Kasihan districts,
from the planned operation of a market, a shopping center,
universities, companies and so forth in the area. Subsequently,
boarding houses, restaurants and other undertakings will also
spring up.

"In short, BKM will improve the welfare of the people and
increase the revenue of the regency administration," he stressed.

Meanwhile, the chairman of the Indonesian Democratic Party for
Struggle (PDI Perjuangan) faction in the Bantul legislative
assembly, Djoko Purnomo, who is also the chairman of the
legislative assembly's Commission A, said his faction supported
the establishment of BKM as it was in tune with the religious and
democratic vision and mission of the Bantul administration.

The legislative assembly of Bantul has also set up a special
committee to follow up the plans for the establishment of BKM. It
has also ratified the agreement between the regency
administration and PT Perwita Karya on the setting up of PT BKM,
which will manage BKM.

BKM will have one elite area that will be strictly developed
on an environmentally friendly basis. This area will have in it,
among other things, a luxury housing compound, medium and low-
cost houses, elementary and secondary schools, universities,
markets, shopping centers, a hospital, sports facilities and so
forth.

Separately, Sendangsari village chief, Sapto Suroso, said that
the land designated for the project was ready for clearance. The
first-stage of land clearance, involving some 200 hectares to 300
hectares, has been completed.

Realizing that a lot of investment is needed to improve the
regency's economy, the Bantul regency administration has prepared
a number of incentives to lure investors.

Besides providing administrative convenience, the local
administration has established Sitimulyo village in Piyungan
district as an industrial estate.

Currently, dozens of companies have registered to set up
factories in this area, which is about 15 kilometers east of
Yogyakarta. Many more companies are expected to follow suit. The
location provided is ideal for an industrial estate.

The Bantul regency administration is also working on
establishing a harbor at Pandansimo beach. The construction of
the harbor is quite promising. Geographically located near the
Indian Ocean, the planned harbor is ideal for fishing related
industries.

Today, the number of fishermen in the area is growing rapidly.
Their huge -- hundreds of kilograms -- catches of white pomfret
and other fishes are mostly exported.

The fishermen's work is slightly hampered by the
unavailability of a proper harbor. In the future, once the new
harbor is built, all related businesses will certainly thrive, as
the contents of the Indian Ocean are unlimited.