ISEI to discuss market economy

JAKARTA (JP): Executives of the Indonesian Economists Association (ISEI) will discuss the emergence of a managed market economy in the 21st century at their 13th congress in Medan, North Sumatra, next month.

ISEI announced over the weekend that the three-day congress, which will start on Oct. 10, will be attended by ISEI executives as well as academicians, people interested in economic issues and practitioners from the government and private sectors.

ISEI's choice of topic is based on the fact that Indonesia is now applying a mixture of economic policies.

"These policies are often open enough to imply that Indonesia is a free market, but the basic nature of many other policies can categorize Indonesia as a managed market," it said.

The congress is expected to examine the phenomenon of a managed market economy and the underlying reasons for its existence, both theoretically and empirically.

The sectors to be discussed in particular are the goods, currency, capital and labor markets, which will play an important role in determining Indonesia's competitiveness in the 21st century.

In relation to the goods market, the congress will focus on the highly important sectors of agriculture and manufacturing, while in relation to the labor market, the emphasis will be put on the development of quality human resources.

Prominent speakers at the congress will include Anwar Nasution of the University of Indonesia's School of Economics, Harinowo of the central bank, Bank Indonesia, Miranda S. Goeltom of the Ministry of Finance, Rizal Ramli of the Econit advisory group, H.S. Dillon of the Ministry of Agriculture and Yudo Swasono of the Ministry of Manpower. (pwn)