Promo center to help boost Indonesian exports to Australia

Urip Hudiono, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta

Indonesian exporters must improve their way of doing business and promoting their products if they want to grab a larger share of the Australian market, the National Export Development Agency (BPEN) said.

Against that backdrop, BPEN welcomed and supported the setting up of a private institution, called the Product Promotion Center Indonesia-Australia (PPCIA), which was launched on Thursday. PPCIA will aim to provide a complete promotion service package for Indonesian exporters wishing to enter the Australian market.

BPEN's head of market development for Australia, New Zealand and the Americas, Dede Hidayat, said the new body would suit well companies wishing to boost export volumes, saying that all Indonesian products had the potential to access the Australian market.

"Furniture products and handicrafts, for example, are among those products experiencing increasing demand from Australia nowadays," he said, during a seminar for the launching of PPCIA.

"We also have an important competitive edge over other countries in the region, being the closest to Australia."

Data from the Central Statistics Agency (BPS) shows that the country's exports to Australia as of November last year were valued at about US$920 million, of which 61 percent came from non-oil and gas commodities, traditionally paper and rubber products.

In 2003, total exports to Australia reached $1.09 billion, up 2.5 percent from the $1.06 billion the previous year.

The figures make Indonesia Australia's second most important trade partner after Singapore within the ASEAN region.

Dede, however, warned that many Indonesian exporters still lack the knowledge and capability to properly conduct business, which has resulted in many complaints from their Australian counterparts.

Dede related as an example the fact that many Australian importers tended to import products in relatively small volumes, but more frequently. "Indonesian exporters have problems keeping up with demand because of that, which often results in a failure to meet orders."

Another problem Indonesian exporters face, Dede added, was in fulfilling quality specifications in Australia, especially for food products.

"There are 87 cases related to this issue that are still being held up by the country's quarantine service," he said.

In addition, there are still many Indonesian producers who do not know how to establish relations with importers and distributors in order to gain access to Australia's market.

Elsewhere, PPCIA director Hasan Asy'ari Oramahi said that the institution would provide fee-based promotional and business consulting service packages for its members.

The package, for an annual fee of A$4,200 (Rp 29 million or US$3,000), would enable members to display their products in Melbourne, where major trade exhibitions are usually held.

In the near future, Hasan said that PPCIA will expand its services to Sydney. For further information, Indonesian exporters can also refer to PPCIA's website at http://www.ppcia.com.au.