Kediri, Purwakarta named as top investment areas in RI
The Jakarta Post, Jakarta
The city of Kediri in East Java and Purwakarta regency in West Java have been named as the most attractive investment destinations in the country for 2004, according to an annual survey conducted by the Regional Autonomy Watch (KPPOD).
KPPOD, a non-governmental organization specializing in research on regional autonomy implementation, also named 12 other cities and regencies for the best infrastructure, labor productivity, economic, social and political conditions, and the fastest improvement categories.
Kediri and Purwakarta were considered the two most attractive investment destinations because of their consistantly high scores in all categories.
"Kediri people have the highest purchasing power in the country, as the city has a GDP per capita of Rp 87.3 million (US$9,427)," a report from KPPOD received by The Jakarta Post on Friday said.
KPPOD said Kediri processed investors' permits in a one-stop service in a professional manner. The city also involved citizens forming its policies through an institution called the "City Forum", which made the administration more transparent and accountable.
Purwakarta was named as the best regency to place investments last year because of its consistency in "implementing comprehensive and responsive policies that directly affected the private sector", the report said.
Having an annual growth of 6.9 percent and a high purchasing power, Purwakarta had promising prospects, KPPOD noted.
Moreover, the regency had a competitive workforce and the regional government ensured investors were treated fairly under the law.
Purwakarta benefitted from its closeness to Jakarta, with better infrastructure compared with other regencies, the report said.
The government has been trying hard to boost domestic and foreign investment in the country to help accelerate economic growth, which has so far been mainly driven by domestic consumption.
During the past few years, investment has been scarce partly due to the poor implementation of the regional autonomy policy which gives regional administrations more power in managing their economic affairs.
Many companies have complained about the corrupt, ineffective bureaucracy in the regions and aggressive moves by local governments to tax businesses.
The KPPOD's latest survey involved 161 regencies and 53 cities in 29 provinces with responses from 5,184 business players.
Respondents' most common complaint was that they were burdened with "unofficial" costs amounting to as much as two-thirds of their average total production costs.
Moreover, 86.4 percent of the respondents claimed that they were left out from the local government process in policy-making.
I-box .RM 9.00" List of top investment cities/regencies in Indonesia ----------------------------------------------------
Categories City Regency Best infrastructure Jakarta Karawang, West Java Best workforce and productivity Kediri, East Java Gresik, East Java Best economy Balikpapan, East Kalimantan Asahan, North Sumatra Best political condition Mojokerto, East Java Magetan, East Java Best institutions Gorontalo, Gorontalo Indramayu, West Java Fastest improvement Parepare, South Sulawesi Kudus, Central Java Most attractive for investment Kediri, East Java Purwakarta, West Java
Source: Regional Autonomy Watch (KPPOD)