VOI - Voice of Indonesia | RRI - Radio Republik Indonesia

Indonesian and Italian diplomatic cooperation and relations are consistent based on the principle of mutual respect and trust since 1949. This is indicated by trade between the two countries in the 2016-2018 period which experienced an average escalation of 12%.

"We value this good relationship. "The two countries continue to build stronger cooperation, can be seen from positive growth in the fields of trade, tourism and investment," said Minister of Industry (Menperin) Airlangga Hartarto while attending the Italian National Day event at Shangri-La Hotel, Jakarta, Thursday night ( 6/20).

Airlangga assesses, there are still many opportunities that have not been fully utilized as well as greater potential in bilateral trade. "I see the export products of the two countries as complementary," he explained.

Airlangga said, when viewed from the trade balance between Indonesia and Italy, the potential that could be optimized was industrial products that dominated trade between Indonesia and Italy, namely, iron and steel, chemical products, footwear, rubber, spices, coffee and tea.

"Iron and steel, for example, Italy has become the eighth largest export market of Indonesia in 2018. In addition, Italy is the second largest manufacturing base in the European Union which supplies various types of industrial products to Indonesia," he said.

Airlangga explained, Italy is widely known as a leading country in the export of machinery and mechanical solutions, metal products, automotive, industrial and transportation equipment, chemical products and synthetic fibers, as well as electrical and electronic equipment.

"For this purpose, Indonesia is a suitable partner for Italy in industrial development. We offer a lot of quality, from high-quality workforce and production capacity, to a growing domestic market, "he explained.

In 2019, Indonesia and Italy celebrate the 70th anniversary of diplomatic relations. This momentum will be commemorated through a number of activities to strengthen cooperation in the creative economy and small and medium enterprises.

Airlangga hopes that bilateral cooperation between the two countries will expand to regional and global regions. Indonesia is a founding member of ASEAN, while Italy is a founding member of the European Union and is a fellow G-20 member. Plus, the two countries share the same view on how to adequately address various global challenges.

"We hope that such initiatives will connect the world-recognized Italian furniture, fashion and footwear industry with Indonesia's growing creative industry. This will help the Indonesian creative industry sector to enter the global market, "he explained.

Airlangga added that the relationship between Indonesia and Italy was increasing after the signing of a memorandum of understanding on energy cooperation between the two countries in 2017. In the collaboration, Indonesia has enormous renewable energy resources such as biomass, hydropower, geothermal energy, wind and solar energy. Whereas Italy has the potential for advanced technology.

"I hope a successful collaboration between PT Pertamina and the Italian oil and gas company ENI will be able to further develop high-quality bio-refineries and biofuels," said Airlangga.

Meanwhile, to further strengthen diplomatic relations between Indonesia and Italy in particular, and with other European countries in general, the Government of Indonesia is waiting for conclusions from the Indonesia-EU negotiations on Comprehensive Partnership Agreement (I-EU CEPA).

"The agreement will pave the way for more trade, investment and technical cooperation. In this case, we value the position of the Italian Government in the issue of palm oil, an export commodity that is very important for Indonesia, "he concluded. (kemenperin)

The Ministry of  Trade supports the simplification of international trade procedures. This was conveyed by Expert Staff on International Relations Dody Edward at the opening of the workshop "Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) Workshop on Implementation Practices of Trade Facilitation Agreement (TFA) Implementation within APEC Economies: Opportunities and Challenges" in Badung Regency, Bali on  Wednesday (6/19).
"With the implementation of TFA, it is expected to simplify and harmonize international trade procedures so that they are more transparent and non-discriminatory," Doddy said.
According to Doddy, tariff barriers to international trade continue to decline. However, on the other hand there is a tendency for an increase in non-tariff trade barriers that are based on the implementation of standards, health, safety, safety and the environment.
"Incorrect implementation of non-tariff trade related barriers has an impact on increasing trade costs and administrative costs in international trade, which ultimately can be protectionist," Dody explained.
The workshop was held to improve the ability of APEC members in implementing their commitment to TFA, especially regarding the simplification of export / import procedures. In addition, the workshop also facilitated members to share their knowledge and experience in implementing TFA according to the agreement in the World Trade Organization (WTO).
The two-day event was attended by 125 participants from the APEC Economy. In addition, this event is a form of realization of the agreement of Indonesia's initiatives through the Ministry of Trade which was submitted to the fora of the 2018 APEC Trade and Investment Committee in Papua New Guinea.
The event was attended by representatives of the APEC Economic embassy in Jakarta, ministries / institutions, academics, and the business world. Also present were experts on trade facilitation agreements including Yann Duval from the United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (UNESCAP) and Alexandre Larouche Maltais from the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD) as the speaker.
"It is expected that this workshop can produce recommendations for the implementation of the WTO FTA from the aspects of the legislative framework and bureaucratic downsizing, as well as the implementation of aspects of information technology communication and institutional procedures. "This recommendation will be presented at the meeting of the Trade and Investment Committee at the APEC forum in Puerto Varas, Chile in the upcoming August 2019," concluded Doddy. (kemendag)

African countries began to see the railway industry as a solution to mass transportation and means of transporting goods, as well as a medium for increasing intra-African trade. The current situation opens opportunities for Indonesian industries to enter and participate in development in Africa. This was conveyed by the Indonesian Ambassador in Pretoria, Salman Al Farisi, welcoming the participation of the State Owned Enterprises, PT INKA (Persero), at the "Africa Rail" Exhibition which took place in Johannesburg, June 19-20 2019.

Africa Rail is the largest railway exhibition in Africa. At the exhibition which has entered its 22nd implementation year, there are at least 130 exhibitors and 6,000 visitors including decision makers, operators, regulators, and officials in the procurement of railways from various countries. Besides PT. INKA, internationally renowned companies in the industry and railroad components participating in Africa Rail include CRRC Corporation Limited, Oracle Construction and Engineering, Voith Transnet, GE, Progress Rail, KNORR, and Luchini. While operators including Procurement Teams present include Botswana Railways, DRC, Ghana Railways, TransNamib and Uganda Railways. The presence of PT INKA as an effort to penetrate the wide open African market into the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA).

With the ratification of AfCFTA documents by at least 22 African countries at the end of May 2019, AfCFTA officially applies in the African region. Under this Free Trade Pact, African countries are committed to cutting tariff barriers by 90% on various types of goods with the aim of increasing intra-African trade. At the same time, African Union (AU) as a regional organization in charge of AfCFTA, also launched the AU 2040 Vision for the railway revitalization program in Africa. Through Vision 2040, a road map was launched as an effort to overcome various gaps in the inequality of connectivity of African countries, including the creation of a network of high-speed railways that connects all African capitals and commercial centers on the continent.

PT INKA (Persero) 's Corporate Communication, Hartono, expressed the desire of PT INKA to raise more Indonesian flags in the African region. Amid the dynamics of competition between railroad manufacturers by various countries, PT INKA offers reliable quality products and after-sales services.

"The presence of PT INKA for the first time at the Africa Rail exhibition is expected to open the door for the next opportunity, after we succeeded in exporting trains to Bangladesh, the Philippines, Singapore, Australia and Malaysia," Hartono said on the sidelines of the exhibition. Furthermore, it was said that among the advantages of PT INKA's after-sales service which was always put forward was the provision of experts for buyers so as to ensure the operationalization of the products well, empowerment of local human resources, and the existence of long-term technology transfer.

During the exhibition, in order to explore the market and develop cooperation, the Indonesian Embassy in Pretoria bridged the PT INKA meeting with the South African company Transnet and the PRASA train operator. Both Transnet and PRASA expressed interest in finding out more about PT INKA products and it is hoped that follow-up talks will occur. PT. INKA has also communicated with several companies related to the possibility of railway development cooperation in Africa including Mozambique, Nigeria, Botswana and Zambia.

The Indonesian government continues to intensify efforts to penetrate non-traditional markets, including Africa. In the railway industry, the Indonesia Railway Development Consortium (IRDC) has been formed which consists of several related BUMNs such as PT. INKA, PT Waskita Karya, PT. LEN and PT. KAI. The consortium is expected to fly the Indonesian flag, becoming a one-step solution. Together with IRDC, PT INKA seeks to get the Indonesian railway product development market through the provision of railway facilities and the development of infrastructure including the construction of infrastructure, operations, maintenance and the provision of funding solution packages.

The success of PT INKA in producing and marketing railroad products made the company continue to expand its production capacity by building new factories, including in Banyuwangi. Construction of new production facilities is expected to be able to meet the needs of railroad facilities in the wider foreign market. The choice of location in Banyuwangi is done by considering the ease of access to the port and the availability of labor that will support the operationalization of the company. (Kemenlu-Indonesian Embassy in Pretoria)

President Joko Widodo (Jokowi) was asked to promote the ideas of the maritime trilogy, including port standardization, shipping alliances, and industries that are easily accessible via ports.

"The government needs to be more active in encouraging synergies and collaborations between the three elements, and promoting the concept of maritime trilogy, namely port standardization, shipping alliances, and industries that are easily accessible via ports," a maritime expert from Surabaya Institute Technology (ITS), Saut Gurning said in Jakarta on Thursday.

According to Saut, participation and encouragement in terms of government budget and finance need to be maximized.

For non-commercial service, government should provide capital costs for dock infrastructures, loading and unloading equipment and human resources development.

"In the future, efforts to stimulate regional funding through local administration-owned enterprises and local banks are needed to explore interests by providing direct benefits for the development of port services," Saut said.

The idea of the maritime trilogy will also reduce national logistics costs, allowing for more competition with neighboring countries.

"Actually, there is nothing new about the three parameters. However, because these three factors become one proposal package, the three proposed variables, namely, standardization including port performance and facilities, shipping collbaoration, and accessibility for industrial estates, are interesting," he said.

According to Saut, port standardization has been initiated by the government, particularly in relation to the performance of port operations.

Regarding shipping collaboration, there are many docks and terminals has been operating under shipping companies, known as "dedicated" terminals.

Saut said he was optimistic that the maritime trilogy would at least provide triple effects, namely for the port itself, the shipping and industry, as well as economic activities to the people living near the ports.

Even so, he said, the application of maritime trilogy was facing several challenges, one of which was because some port operators tend to focus only on the interests of their entity.

"I think, efforts to collaborate among  port operators, including stevedoring services and shipping, should be established by various state-owned enterprises and private businesses, as well as local administration-owned enterprises," he explained.

Some shipping industry players positively welcomed the idea of the maritime trilogy. Corporate Secretary of the National Shipping Company (PT Pelni) Yahya Kuncoro said the implementation of the maritime trilogy would also provide great benefits for the company.

"As a shipping company, we have an interest in providing service faster and faster. Of course, collaboration among the three parties would impact on reducing operational costs," he said. (ant)