Government to set up special agency for IT
Government to set up special agency for IT
JAKARTA (JP): Coordinating Minister for the Economy Rizal
Ramli said on Wednesday a special government agency would be set
up next year to speed up the development of information
technology (IT) in the country.
Rizal said the agency was urgently needed because Indonesia
lagged far behind other countries, including China and India, in
the IT sector.
"We have agreed to establish a special committee for IT
development," he said following a meeting with senior officials
from the Ministry of Communications and the Ministry of Trade and
Industry.
"We do not want Indonesia to remain far behind, so the
government must take the initiative to speed up IT development."
He added that a presidential decree on the establishment and
mandate of the agency would be issued.
Rizal said the government also was considering a fiscal
incentive policy to help boost the development of the IT sector.
He explained that developing the IT sector was important for
the economy because IT offered lucrative business opportunities,
pointing out that IT-related business transactions next year were
projected to reach US$253 billion worldwide.
A number of government officials earlier said Indonesia was
aiming to capture at least 8 percent of the world's IT market.
Rizal said the export performance of the country's electronic
sector was not too bad, reaching approximately $7 billion.
According to him, if the domestic IT sector is properly
developed, it has the potential to overtake the textile sector as
the country's largest non-oil and gas export commodity.
"We still have enough time to catch up with other nations in
the IT fields," he said.
Rizal added that the government was eager to take advantage of
the $15 billion loan promised by the Japanese government for the
development of IT industries in Asia.
He added that President Abdurrahman Wahid, who recently
attended a Southeast Asian gathering on IT development, supported
the establishment of the special government agency.
According to the Ministry of Communications, there currently
are some 1,200 websites in the country with a total of about
150,000 visitors.
The ministry has forecast the number of visitors will jump to
about 250,000 in 2005.
The government currently is preparing a blueprint for the
information technology sector, which will be discussed with the
House of Representatives.
Experts have criticized the government for its lack of a clear
policy and vision in developing the IT sector.
Some have suggested a new ministry be established with a
mandate to develop the IT industry. In the current Cabinet the IT
industry falls under the portfolios of two different ministries,
the Ministry of Communications and the Ministry of Trade and
Industry.
Other experts also warned the government of the urgency of a
cyber law in Indonesia to anticipate future disputes in the
industry. (rei)