GIVING PRIORITY TO ECONOMIC DIPLOMACY WITH AFRICA by Fardah

Jakarta, March 18, 2017 (Antara) -The Indonesian government, in parallel with its sound political relations with and Africa in general, is currently intensifying economic ties with several countries in the continent.

         In fact, Foreign Affairs Minister Retno LP Marsudi has stated on several occasions that the Indonesian government is giving priority to forge closer economic relations with Africa this year.  
   "Africa has great potentials, and therefore, it is important for Indonesia to expand and strengthen relations with that continent, including South Africa," the minister said while visiting South Africa earlier this year.

        The government has encouraged the private sector to expand business and trade in the continent.

          "We have paved the way for the expansion of international relations with African countries, and we expect the business sector to follow with business expansion," Niniek Kun Naryatie, Director General of Information and Diplomacy of the Foreign Ministry, stated recently.

           "It has to be hand in hand. We have invested politically and that should be followed by economic investment," she added.

           The government functions to create a conducive condition. It is like opening the door for the private sector to enter.

          Business people from other countries are seeking to invest in Africa, which is predicted to grow faster in the coming years, and Indonesia does not want to be left behind.

         On March 7, 2017, Indonesia hosted the first summit of the Indian Ocean Rim Association (IORA), which groups 21 countries, including eastern African nations, such as Comoros, Kenya, Madagascar, South Africa, Mozambique, Somalia, and Tanzania.

          The summit ended with the signing of the Jakarta Concord that calls for promoting regional cooperation in economy and investment, as well as maintaining security and peace in the Indian Ocean region. 
  Indonesia has viewed that the implementation of the Jakarta Concord would facilitate the country's export penetration to Africa.

         The Indonesian government would propose the establishment of port networks in the Indian Ocean rim to open access to a number of seaports in Africa.

       The port network would be strengthened with customs and excise system in all ports in the Indian Ocean by setting tariffs and investment.

        On the sidelines of the IORA Summit, President Joko Widodo and his South African counterpart Jacob Gedleyehlekisa Zuma held a bilateral meeting to discuss cooperation in the fields of economics, investment, and aviation, among other things.

         Minister of Transportation Budi Karya Sumadi later informed the press that a South African company has expressed interest in developing railways in Kalimantan to transport coal.

         The value of bilateral trade between Indonesia and South Africa clocked US$860 million during the Jan-Oct 2016 period.

         Indonesia's main export commodities to South Africa are motor vehicles, rubber, sandals, tires, and paper.

        In 2016, South Africa had invested $981,500 in Indonesia, thereby bringing the total to $2.75 million during the 2011-2016 period.

       During the IORA Business Summit held on March 6, Zuma expressed his optimism that the IORA partnership cooperation would be beneficial not only for the people in the area but also for future generations across the globe.

         Zuma reminded the participants about the importance of supporting small and medium enterprises (SMEs), adding that it was the key to boost economic growth and create jobs.

         Meanwhile, the Indonesian government has organized tens of capacity building programs, such as training and courses on democracy, agriculture, freshwater aquaculture, entrepreneurship, automotive, tourism, archive management, governance and corruption eradication, for African countries.

        The latest capacity building program is on agriculture and organized by the Directorate of Technical Cooperation of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

        "We chose to conduct the agricultural training, because agriculture is the backbone of our economy," Niniek Kun Naryatie said recently. 
   The International Training on Agricultural for African Countries is attended by 12 participants from 11 African countries, namely Zimbabwe, Angola, Ethiopia, Gambia, Madagascar, Sudan, Kenya, Mozambique, Tanzania, Nigeria, and Namibia.

        The training is taking place at the Rural and Agricultural Training Center (P4S) located in Kuningan District, West Java Province, from March 15 to April 30, 2017.

         The program is intended to increase the knowledge and expertise of the African farmers in rice-cultivation technology, production of corn, and planting and caring of coffee plants.

        Indonesia is very much committed to carrying out South-South Cooperation aimed at promoting development cooperation among developing countries in Africa, Asia, and Latin America. ***3***
(f001/INE)
EDITED BY INE/H-YH

(T.F001/A/BESSR/A/Yosep) 18-03-2017