More aid sought for small firms in eastern provices

More aid sought for small firms in eastern provices

AMBON, Maluku (JP): East Timor's governor, Abilio Jose Osorio
Soares, called on the government and large businesses yesterday
to provide more assistance to small firms and cooperatives in
Indonesia's eastern provinces.

He said the government should give subsidized credit to small
businesses in the region so they could grow rapidly and develop
their own region.

"If companies in Java can get credit with an interest rate of
18 percent per annum, for instance, companies in eastern
Indonesia should get something better, like 15 percent. Not even
15 percent, just 17 percent would be good," Soares said.

The governor was here to attend the first Australia-Indonesia
Development Area (AIDA) ministerial meeting. AIDA is a sub-
regional economic zone involving Australia and Indonesia's
eastern provinces.

Soares said AIDA should help eastern Indonesian provinces tap
their business potential and grow much faster and catch up to the
level of development in Indonesia's western provinces.

But he warned that AIDA would not mean much if the central
government did not give more assistance to local administrations
and businesses.

Besides AIDA, Indonesia is involved in three other sub-
regional growth areas.

These are the Indonesia-Malaysia-Singapore Growth Triangle,
the Indonesia-Malaysia-Thailand Growth Triangle and the Brunei-
Indonesia-Malaysia-the Philippines East ASEAN Growth Area.

The coordinating minister for production and distribution,
Hartarto, promised the government would help local
administrations and businesses provided they worked together to
benefit from sub-regional economic zones.

"If local businesses feel incapable, they should form
partnerships with stronger businesses from their neighboring
provinces," Hartarto said.

Hartarto said local administrations needed to improve their
efficiency and professionalism if there were to maximize the
benefits sub-regional zones created.

"This is important because the role of local administrations
is instrumental in developing local businesses," he said.

Soares also called on big businesses in Jakarta to venture
into eastern provinces.

"They should not come in just for the sake of investing here
but come and involve local people as partners," he said.

He cited the partnership formed by the president of PT Bakrie
& Brothers, Tanri Abeng, with local East Timorese in general
trading activities.

Soares promised his administration would do its best to help
investors implement their investment projects in East Timor.

But he reminded investors to involve as many locals as
possible.

"I always call on investors. Please, do not develop in East
Timor, but develop East Timor," he said.

He said that despite political problems investment in East
Timor was improving.

He said before the end of his term in September he would open
three factories including a textile plant.

The Rp 3 billion (US$1.23 million) textile plant in Dili,
owned by the Dili-based Heart Foundation, is being built by the
Texmaco Group.

Texmaco will supply raw materials and help the factory market
its products.

President Soeharto's youngest son, Hutomo Mandala Putra, would
set up a sugar mill using local sugar cane, he said.

When asked about East Timor's political situation, Soares
said: "Who said the East Timor problem has not been resolved? The
United Nations? Let the United Nations continue to question East
Timor, but we will continue to develop our region. (rid)