The sea toll program is crucial for Indonesia, which is one of the world`s largest maritime countries, with some 5.8 million square kilometers of sea territory, while its land territory covers only 1.9 million square kilometers. Moreover, the largest archipelagic nation in the world has some 17,480 islands, and its coastline is some 92 thousand kilometers long, making it the second longest after Canada.
The administration of President Joko Widodo (Jokowi), which aims to develop the country into a global maritime axis, has come up with the sea toll road concept that will improve ports and shipping in order to facilitate the transport of goods across the archipelago.
The sea toll road service, operational since 2015, is expected to help reduce the high price disparity between eastern and western Indonesian regions, which is so far caused by expensive shipping freight costs, as almost every ship returning from remote areas is empty or carries no freight. The Transportation Ministry organized a national seminar on marine toll aboard MV Dorolonda at the Tanjung Perak Seaport, Usrabaya, on February 4, 2019, to discuss the implementation of sea toll services.
The seminar, themed, "To Improve Connectivity, to Open Logistics Supply Routes, and to Reduce Goods Price Disparity", was held in cooperation with the organizing committee of the National Press Day 2019.
The seminar was attended by officials of the Transportation Ministry, Trade Ministry, Agriculture Ministry, Maritime Affairs and Fisheries Ministry, state-owned enterprises (BUMN), governments, academicians, and journalists. The trade minister, agriculture minister, transportation minister, and maritime affairs and fisheries minister were among the speakers at the seminar.
Marine toll has a significant function for Indonesia, as waters constitute three-quarters of its territory, according to Captain Wisnu Handoko, director of marine traffic and freight of the Transportation Ministry, while speaking at the seminar.
The Jokowi administration has developed marine tolls to ensure the smooth supply of goods in remote areas and to lower the prices of commodities and goods in the outermost regions.
Minister of Trade Enggartiasto Lukita said at the seminar that the sea toll road program has indeed managed to reduce the price disparity of basic commodities in the eastern part of Indonesia.
"Some people express hesitation over the sea toll road program. But President Jokowi continues to implement the program," Lukita stated.
If price disparity between eastern and western Indonesia still existed, justice failed to materialize, he remarked. The minister, however, noted that there was still an ego-sectoral among agencies or institutions over the implementation of the sea toll road program.
Therefore, the coordination among institutions was necessary, particularly for loading and unloading and getting accurate information about the needs and potential of an area.
Minister of Transportation Budi Karya Sumadi revealed that the prices of basic commodities in the eastern part of Indonesia had dropped 15-20 percent on average. He noted that the government would distribute 50 ships for state-owned companies and 50 ships for the private sector this year.
The sea toll road has the potential to seize the air cargo market because the price is competitive, the minister explained.
Sumadi and Lukita earlier signed a declaration of MV Dorolonda regarding a sea toll program ahead of National Press Day 2019.
The declaration, signed aboard MV Dorolonda at the Tanjung Perak Seaport, contains several measures that should be taken to improve the sea toll program introduced by Jokowi back in 2015.
Of the various measures, the first is urging various parties to get involved in this mode of transportation to support immediate digitalization of the sea transport process and system, so it can be more effective, efficient, and transparent.
Second, it is deemed necessary to disseminate information over the sea toll program to the public through more creative and innovative methods.
Third, it is important to improve the quality of port services and reduce the tariff for loading and unloading cargo at the port.
The fourth is to conduct re-mapping and continue the sea toll concept in future by involving all parties, including the private sector and regional government, through the sea toll.
The fifth is to request that the implementation of the sea toll system would consider and include existing public shipping, so that they become an integral part of the sea toll node.
The sixth is to expect consistency and continuity in the development of sea transportation in Indonesia, so as to provide business certainty in the sea transportation sector.
The Ministry of Transportation has vowed to continue to improve the effectiveness of the sea toll program to improve the national connectivity and further reduce price disparities in eastern Indonesia. (ant)
Live Streaming
Program Highlight
Company Profile
February
Sea Toll Program Works in Reducing Price Disparity
Written by Published in Indonesia Today
Read 979 times
February
Indonesia and G Britain Cooperation in Funding Disaster Research
Written by Published in Indonesia Today
Read 835 times
Indonesia's Research, Technology, and Higher Education Ministry is collaborating with the UK Department of Business, Energy, and Industrial Strategy through the Newton Fund-funded three studies in the field of hydrometeorology for the 2019-2021 period.
"There are three elected proposals jointly funded, with a total fund of Rp31 billion over a period of three years," Minister of Research, Technology, and Higher Education Mohamad Nasir stated at the launching of the research cooperation here on Thursday.
The three studies were selected from 23 research proposals assessed by the Indonesian and British parties. The selection process for research is conducted in an open, transparent, and competitive manner.
Nasir remarked that under the research collaboration, Indonesian and British scientists will collaborate in high-standard research that aims to produce a breakthrough in the field of disaster intervention, especially in understanding the impacts of land- and water-related disasters.
Results of the collaboration will increase Indonesia`s resilience and readiness to deal with climate change, including through effective disaster policy and communication interventions.
Of the three selected research projects, the first is a research titled "Mitigating hydro meteorological hazard impacts through trans-boundary river management in the Ciliwung River basin."
The research is aimed at improving the management of the Ciliwung river body and public awareness of the threat of flooding. The main researcher from Indonesia is Harkunti Rahayu from the Bandung Institute of Technology, while Richard Haigh from the University of Huddersfield is the main researcher from England.
The second research, titled "Java Flood One," aims to improve medium-term flood forecasts in several cities in Java, including Jakarta, Bandung, and Surakarta. The main researcher from Indonesia is Agus Mochamad Ramdhan from the Bandung Institute of Technology and Simon Mathias from Durham University is the main researcher from England.
The third research, titled "Extreme rainfall and its effects on flood risk in Indonesia," aims to identify the main causes of flooding in Indonesia and the main strategies that can mitigate disaster risk. Suroso from Jenderal Sudirman University is Indonesia`s main researcher, while Chris Kilsby from Newcastle University is the main researcher from England.
Meanwhile, British Ambassador to Indonesia, ASEAN, and Timor Leste Moazzam Malik stated that international collaboration and funding commitments will have a significant social and economic impact.
Newton Fund, in partnership with the Ministry of Research and Technology, is committed to funding international-scale collaborative research that can contribute positively, both socially and economically.
He remarked that the United Kingdom had contributed 87 percent of the total funding of Rp31 billion to fund the three researches. (ant)
February
Indonesia and EU Discuss Trade and Investment Issues
Written by Published in Indonesia Today
Read 819 times
Indonesia and European Union (EU) held the 9th meeting of the Working Group on Trade and Investment (WGTI) in Brussels, Belgium, to discuss the latest issues in the fields of trade and investment.
"At the WGTI meeting, we discussed a wide range of technical issues related to the implementation of policies that need special attention from both sides to encourage smooth business and investment," Director General of Trade Negotiations at the Trade Ministry Imam Pambagyo noted in a written statement released on Thursday.
Although not all the issues could be resolved, the two sides were at least able to exchange information to find a common solution, he affirmed.
Pambagyo, who led the Indonesian delegation to the meeting, expressed hope that the forum would support the ongoing negotiations on the Indonesia-European Union Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (I-EU CEPA). One of the issues that Indonesia raised at the meeting was its palm oil`s access to the EU market, he remarked.
The EU parliament`s decision to stop the contribution of palm oil-based biofuel in the update of the renewable energy directive (RED Recast) has raised serious concern among and sparked strong reaction from stakeholders in Indonesia. On the occasion, the Indonesian delegation also raised the issue of sanitation and phytosanitary standards that the EU had imposed on various import commodities, such as tea and cocoa. Indonesia and the EU also discussed a proposed policy on the mechanism of selecting investment in EU member states.
Meanwhile, the EU raised several issues related to trade and investment policies in Indonesia, such as domestic regulation related to permits to import horticulture and husbandry products, the negative list of investment, and the Indonesian National Standard (SNI).
Trade between Indonesia and the EU reached US$28.9 billion. Over the past five years, Indonesia enjoyed a surplus in its trade with EU. Meanwhile, EU's investment reached $3.2 billion. (ant)
February
President Jokowi Clarifies Statement on Russian Propaganda
Written by Published in Indonesia Today
Read 892 times
President Joko Widodo (Jokowi) has clarified his statement on Russian propaganda, saying that he did not refer to Russia as a country.
"Yes, we did not talk about a country, yes," President Jokowi said here, Tuesday evening.
The terminology of Russian propaganda was mentioned in an article issued by Rand Corporation, a US political consultant institute, in 2016, he said. The Russian propaganda means a technique of firehose of falsehood, according to Rand Corporation. A firehose of falsehood, lies and hoaxes could affect and create uncertainty, Jokowi said.
The President said the bilateral relations between Indonesia and Russia are very sound.
"I and President Putin have very very good relations," Jokowi said.
Meanwhile, the Russian Embassy in Jakarta has stressed that Russia does not intervene in the Indonesian presidential election. The embassy was responding to a statement by Jokowi in Solo, Central Java, on Sunday that the one using a foreign consultant in politics tended to not think of the impact on the people, one of them being through the theory of Russian propaganda.
On its official twitter account @RusEmbJakarta on Monday, the embassy said the term "Russian propaganda" was engineered in the United States in 2016 within the framework of the presidential election campaign. According to the Russian government, the term was by no means based on reality.
"We underline that the principal position of Russia is to not intervene in the internal affairs and electoral processes of other countries, including Indonesia, which is our close friend and important partner. -- Russian Embassy, IDN (@RusEmbJakarta) February 4, 2019," the Russian embassy tweeted.
Airlangga Hartarto, chairman of the Golkar Party, later clarified that incumbent presidential candidate Jokowi did not accuse Russia of meddling in the Indonesian presidential election.
"The statement`s context is not inter-countries," Hartarto stated here, Monday evening (Feb 4).
He added that one country indeed should not meddle in the political process of another nation. (ant)