VOI - Voice of Indonesia | RRI - Radio Republik Indonesia

Finance Minister Sri Mulyani Indrawati believes that the intensifying trade war between the United States (US) and China will not have a significant impact on the growth of bank credit in Indonesia, which is a guideline reflecting the expansion of the business world.

"The credit is still very positive, so far. Especially for investment loans and working capital, as stated by Pak Wimboh, Chairman of the Board of Commissioners of the Financial Services Authority, just before Lebaran (post-fasting festivities)," said Sri Mulyani at the working meeting of  the House of Representatives' Budgetary Agency in here on Tuesday.

The former Managing Director of the World Bank said the growth of bank credit was assisting in the recovery and growth seen in the middle of this year, after weakening in recent years.

The minister also said she hoped the momentum in growth will continue throughout 2019.

This condition will be realized if the momentum of domestic economic growth is maintained, and is able to counteract the impact of the economic slowdown due to a trade war between two economic giants, the US and China.

"Of course, overall economic growth must be maintained so that the optimism of business people will remain positive so that they will be able to increase their business volume," she said,

As for April 2019, according to the Financial Services Authority (FSA), credit growth still grew at 11.05 percent on an annual basis (yoy).

In the growth of credit, investment credit grew by 14.34 percent (yoy), working capital loans 10.48 percent (yoy), and consumption loans grew 9.06 percent (yoy). The swift credit distribution was driven by the mining sector, which grew to 37.6 percent.

In addition, the construction sector grew 27.55 percent (yoy), while the agriculture and processing sectors grew 10.65 percent and 8.7 percent (yoy), respectively.

The bank credit risk, as of April 2019, is at a low level. This is reflected in the ratio of bad loans or non-performing loans (NPLs) to gross banks of 2.57 percent and net NPLs of 1.15 percent.

Meanwhile, the Capital Adequacy Ratio (CAR) was 23.78 percent, and the loan-to-deposit ratio (LDR) decreased to 93 percent from 94 percent. (ant)

The US Marine Corps and Navy Marines held joint exercises at Bhumi Marines Base in Gedangan, Sidoarjo, to strengthen cooperation between the two militaries.

The joint exercises, entitled Subject Matter Expert Exchange (SMEE) Neo and R2P2 for Fiscal Year 2019, was opened by Marine Corps Commander Major General   Suhartono, M.Tr (Han), who was represented by Marine Brigade Commander,  Colonel Agus Gunawan Wibisono.

In his mandate, read out by the Marine Brigade Commander, the Marine Corps Commander said the defense cooperation between the Government of the Republic of Indonesia and the United States Government had been continuing for many years.

"One form of cooperation is the holding of joint exercises between the Indonesian Navy, in this case the Indonesian Marine Corps and the United States Marine Corps," he said.

"I am happy and quite proud, because with this training activity, the Navy Marine Corps will be able to further strengthen the existence of coaching and enhancing the capabilities of its ranks. Also, this is a form of trust given by the Unit to the Marine Corps,” said the marine corps commander.

Further, he thanked the United States government for the cooperation and planning of the exercises that had been carried out previously, as well as for the Navy headquarters, that had jointly planned and prepared, so that the training could be held.

To the US Marine Corps delegation, the marine corps commander expressed his welcome to Indonesia, especially at the R. Suhadi Marine Corps in Gedangan, Sidoarjo.

"Have the exercise, and hopefully it does not only add to an increase in ability and expertise, but also to better understand Indonesia, especially the Marine Corps, so that it can have relations that are more harmonious and brotherly and become very valuable memories," he said.

Before ending his mandate, the marine corps commander stressed to all the participating marines to carry out and train with full motivation and dedication, and have a sense of responsibility, prioritizing security factors to ensure there are no accidents, while carefully following security procedures. (ant)

Ubud, located in Gianyar District of Bali, will be designated as a world gastronomic tourist destination, based upon the standards of the United Nation World Tourism Organization (UNWTO). 

Tourism Minister Arief Yahya, at a press conference in Jakarta on Tuesday, said the process to certify Ubud as a gastronomic tourist destination would be an example for other regions in Indonesia.

"The establishment and assessment of Ubud as a gastronomic destination is the first in the world. And this is an example for other regions, such as Bandung and Yogya, Solo and Semarang," he stated.

According to Yahya, there are three important stages in the process of certifying Ubud as a world gastronomic destination.

The first is to conduct an inventory of assets and gastronomic attractions, including mapping the readiness of the industry and business, which are then compiled in a report and submitted to UNWTO.

"This stage has been done, the process takes about 1.5 years," Yahya said.

Second is the assessment by UNWTO starting from the verification and analysis process through a fairly detailed method, including 600 interviews with all gastronomic stakeholders, food and beverages, producers, hotels, restaurants, chefs, food festival initiators, the regional government, transportation providers, academics, as well as local and foreign tourists.

"The process will last eight days in Ubud and its surroundings, while surveys will be conducted online and offline for three weeks. At this stage, planning and recommendation strategies are also being carried out," the minister said.

Third are recommendations that need to be implemented and carried out by stakeholders for the second assessment, which is scheduled for early August 2019.

The press conference was also attended by the Chairperson of the Ministry of Tourism and Shopping Culinary Acceleration Team, Vita Datau, UNWTO Project Specialist Aditya Amaranggana and UNWTO Lead Experts Roberta Garibaldi.

Vita Datau added, if all processes were carried out correctly, then Ubud could be designated as a gastronomic tourist destination for the UNWTO prototype, which was in accordance with the gastronomy destination development guideline of UNWTO.

To be declared a prototype, there are five standard criteria for UNWTO gastronomic destinations, including lifestyle, local products, culture and history, background stories of foods, as well as nutrition and health.

The implementation of these standards are important, as it will become a benchmark for Indonesia and other targeted regions for gastronomic destinations, such as Yogyakarta, Solo, Semarang and Bandung.

"Indonesia is rich in tourism potentials, as it has a varied and wide geographical area and landscape. This gastronomic destination is most likely to provide welfare to communities from upstream to downstream, so that people feel the impact," Yahya noted. (ant)

Bank Indonesia has emphasised the importance of continuing financial sector reforms, in order to reduce financial risks and overcome its own weaknesses.

"One initiative, implemented by the Indonesian authorities, allows us to more thoroughly penetrate the financial market," Executive Director of Bank Indonesia's Communication Department Onny Widjanarko said, in a statement here on Tuesday.

To that end, Bank Indonesia considers the current pace of financial sector reforms to be fragmented within its various jurisdictions, which must be overcome through greater cooperation and sharing of information with the authorities from other countries.

Bank Indonesia has also stressed the need to strike a balance between nurturing innovation in the financial sector, while minimizing those risks that might emerge.

That was the key message to come out of the G20 Finance Ministers and Central Bank Governors Meeting in Fukuoka, Japan, held on 6-9th June 2019, with an Indonesian delegation in attendance, led by Finance Minister Sri Mulyani Indrawati and Deputy Governor Budi Waluyo.

The recent escalation of trade tensions has dominated discussions at the meeting of financial and monetary authorities.

Current global trade dynamics are harming the global economy and business-investor confidence is retreating.

If unresolved, the trade tensions will lower global economic growth by 0.5 percent, increasing from the previous projection of 0.2 percent.

Furthermore, prevailing global economic dynamics require the support of a strong Global Financial Safety Net (GFSN).

The G20 Finance Ministers and Central Bank Governors also discussed the priority issue of Japan’s Presidency and the implications of an ageing population on macroeconomic policy, risk mitigation efforts for global imbalances and efforts to increase infrastructure financing through the provision of quality infrastructure.

Bank Indonesia took the opportunity to reiterate the importance of understanding the sources of imbalances and observing the imbalances from a more holistic perspective, not merely in terms of the current account deficit or trade balance, yet also through productive financing in the form of foreign direct investment (FDI).

Bank Indonesia also highlighted the importance of a macroeconomic policy mix to overcome excessive imbalances.

The global economy showed early improvement in the first three months of 2019, with the gains expected to continue into 2020, as projected in April 2019.

Nevertheless, the positive indications remain overshadowed by various risks that could trigger a slowdown, including any furtherance of trade tensions, a lack of clarity on the way forward with Brexit, and increasing financial sector vulnerabilities amidst low interest rates.

Consequently, G20 members were urged not to become complacent regarding positive achievements, while continuing to reduce risks and be prepared to implement necessary policies.

In addition, supporting global economic growth has been proven more effective through joint action to enhance the international coordination framework. (ant)