Govt to simplify bureaucracy to boost national efficiency

JAKARTA (JP): Minister of Industry Tunky Ariwibowo has announced that the government will slash the licensing bureaucracy to reduce production costs and improve the competitiveness of Indonesia's products on the world market.

"It is the system of bureaucracy which should be simplified," he told reporters after delivering a presentation at a two-day conference of business associations at the Shangri-La hotel, yesterday.

He said that contacts between businessmen and the officials authorized to produce licenses will be minimized to reduce the possibility of collusion and payoffs.

Tunky acknowledged that the number of personal contacts between businessmen and government officials assigned to issue licenses, particularly those in local administrations, is too high.

"Local administrations, therefore, will be encouraged to minimize the contacts," he said.

He cited that Minister of Transportation Haryanto Dhanutirto has recently set a courageous step by arranging a computerization system at the Tanjung Priok port in Jakarta, as well as other major sea ports, to expedite document processing.

The program, scheduled to begin this month, is planned to minimize personal contacts between officials and port service users, he added.

Illegal levies for public services have increased costs for producing goods, thereby affecting the country's export competitiveness.

The government has repeatedly expressed concern over the slowing growth of the country's non-oil exports from over 20 percent per annum to just 16 percent last year.

Tunky said measures of bureaucratic simplification will also be applied to other sectors.

"Next month some ministers will visit several provinces to meet with regents to make them understand more about the government's measures to attract foreign investment," he said.

At yesterday's meeting, the chairman of the Indonesian Small Business Association (Hipli), C. Feber Purba, complained that administration in the country is indeed messy.

He challenged Minister Joedono that red tape still occurs because of the poor coordination among governmental bodies.

Citing an example, Purba said that a number of local administrations levy a certain tax on heavy equipment although they have already been taxed by the central government.

"It seems that the government should first deregulate itself before calling on the business community to be more efficient," he said. (09/icn)