W. Java to pitch infrastructure
W. Java to pitch infrastructure
Yuli Tri Suwarni and Zakki P. Hakim, The Jakarta Post, Bandung/Jakarta
A total of 174 foreign and domestic investors are set to take
part in the two-day West Java Infrastructure Summit starting on
Thursday, in which the provincial administration is offering up
57 infrastructure projects worth Rp 35 trillion (US$3.53
billion).
"We are offering cooperative funding ventures for projects
such as toll roads, sea ports and airports, geothermal-based
power plants, dams and others," said Memet Hamdan, head of the
province's Regional Promotion and Investment Agency (BPPMD).
Held in cooperation with the province's Chamber of Commerce
and Industry (Kadinda) and consulting firm PA Asia Ltd., which is
affiliated to Brussels-based consultancy group Praaning Meines,
and supported by the Asian Development Bank (ADB), the
administration hopes the summit will provide a much-needed boost
to the local economy.
It earlier said West Java needed at least Rp 200 trillion of
investment in infrastructure for its economy to grow from the
current 5 percent annual growth to 8 percent during the next five
years. Increased growth the administration said would cut the
province's unemployment rate and reduce poverty.
West Java, home to 39.14 million people, currently has 2.4
million jobless people and 10 million living under the poverty
line.
The province has business opportunities in agriculture,
fisheries, tourism, manufacturing, the trade and service sectors
and human resources development. However, a lack of
infrastructure has discouraged investment in these areas.
The summit's opening ceremony will be held at the Gedung
Merdeka, while plenary and working group sessions will follow at
Savoy Homann Hotel, both in Bandung.
The organizers have yet to set any investment targets but say
they are prioritizing seven toll road projects across the
province, the development of an international airport in
Kalijati, Majalengka -- about three hours' drive south of Bandung
-- and a marine harbor in Cirebon.
The administration also plans to develop a "modest"
international fishing and commercial port near Cikalong,
Tasikmalaya, in the southern part of the province, to help boost
economic ties with Australia and other neighbors.
Memet said the foreign investors included 70 businesses from
China, 30 from Singapore, 10 from South Korea, eight from
Malaysia, two from India and others from European Union
countries.
"Our regional budget is only about Rp 2 trillion, which makes
it impossible for us to finance all the development projects we
need to boost the economic growth to 8 percent," West Java
Governor Danny Setiawan said.
Each project offered in the event would include a feasibility
study conducted by the administration, Danny said.
During the event, organizers would also provide free-of-charge
legal consultants to explain the legal framework for the
projects, he said.
"Investors will most likely ask things regarding legal
certainty in the province, so we are providing free legal advice
to convince them to invest here," he said.