RI needs $72b for infrastructures
RI needs $72b for infrastructures
Endy M. Bayuni, The Jakarta Post, Santiago
Building infrastructure will be the bedrock of the
government's economic strategy for the next five years, and that
means raising no less than US$72 billion, or around Rp 600
trillion to finance related projects, President Susilo Bambang
Yudhoyono said on Friday.
The money, he said, would come from all kind of sources: the
government, private sector investment, foreign aid, and foreign
direct investment.
Such a huge sum is needed to build roads, railways, ports,
airports, power plants, clean water and irrigation facilities and
other infrastructure, he said on board a Garuda Indonesia plane
prior to landing in Santiago.
He also stressed that he would be working closely with
regional administrations to meet the goal.
The President is in Santiago to attend the annual Asia Pacific
Economic Cooperation (APEC) forum this weekend.Building
infrastructure will be among the issues he raises during a series
of meetings with other APEC leaders.
He also disclosed that the government would organize the
"Infrastructure Summit" in Jakarta in January, to hammer home the
point.
The President pledged that the government would strive to
improve the climate for investment in Indonesia, both for
domestic and foreign investors. That meant improving the
political and economic climate, and legal framework, he added.
"We are still calculating to what extent the projects will be
financed by the government, the domestic private sector, foreign
aid and foreign investors," he said.
He also denied a reversal in government policy on taking new
loans.
"We continue to open ourselves up to new loans, as long as
they are in our national interests and they are for a good
purpose," he said.
His predecessor, Megawati Soekarnoputri, refrained from taking
new loans in the last two years, in an attempt to progressively
cut Indonesia's foreign debt, which today stands at around $130
billion.
"Our debt level is already too high," President Susilo
conceded.
He said the government would continue to strive to reduce the
debt through various options, including selling off government
assets, privatizing state enterprises, taking bank loans, issuing
government bonds, and turning to foreign loans. -- More APEC
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