VOI - Voice of Indonesia | RRI - Radio Republik Indonesia

Indonesia’s Coordinating Minister for Economic Affairs, Luhut Binsar Pandjaitan, and Minister of State-Owned Enterprises, Erick Thohir, have left for Tokyo to garner support for the creation of the Sovereign Wealth Fund (SWF).

During their two-day visit from December 3 to 4, 2020, Pandjaitan and Thohir will hold talks with representatives from the Japanese government and companies, Indonesian Ambassador to Japan, Heri Akhmadi, said in a written statement here on Wednesday.

They will also meet with a number of officials at the Japanese Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry and several financial institutions, including the Japan Bank for International Cooperation (JBIC).

"The visit of the two ministers is a follow-up to the agreement reached by Indonesian President Joko Widodo and the Japanese Prime Minister in Bogor on October 20, 2020," Akhmadi said.

Set up under the new job creation law, SWF Indonesia, also known as the Nusantara Investment Authority, has been authorized to manage investment funds to support the Indonesian economy. (Antaranews)

Indonesian President Joko Widodo (Jokowi) unswervingly drew emphasis to prosperity-oriented approaches to tackle problems in the provinces of Papua and West Papua, Presidential Chief of Staff Moeldoko stated.

"Since the start, President Jokowi has stressed that prosperity-oriented approaches lay greater emphasis on resolving Papua-related matters," Moeldoko was quoted by ANTARA as saying in Jakarta on Wednesday.

Citing one of the shining examples of the Jokowi administration's prosperity-oriented approaches, Moeldoko drew attention to various infrastructure construction projects in Papua and West Papua to enable them to be at par with other provinces.

President Jokowi also focused on boosting the economic sector of Papua and West Papua by, for instance, enforcing the one-fuel price policy there as part of the government's endeavors to create social justice for the local people, he pointed out.

The government also remains focused on development of the health and education sectors in the two Indonesian provinces, he remarked.

Moeldoko believes that the second phase of special autonomy status granted for Papua and West Papua would be driven to fuel a new spirit in expediting developments to create prosperity in both provinces.

"Regarding a road to the granting of this second phase of special autonomy, there has been in place the Presidential Decision No. 20 of 2020 on an integrated coordinating team for accelerating prosperity-oriented developments in Papua and West Papua," he stated.

The presidential decision is aimed at creating a spirit, paradigm, and novel methods to manage the accelerated developments in Papua and West Papua, he noted.

The presidential decision targets intensifying synergistic collaborations among ministries, government agencies, and regional administrations to expedite development programs to create prosperity in the two provinces.

ANTARA noted that the central government had provided special autonomy funds worth Rp126.99 trillion to Papua and West Papua since 2012.

In Indonesia's 2019 human development index, Papua and West Papua recorded scores of 64.7 and 60.84 respectively. (Antaranews)

Energy and Mineral Resources Minister Arifin Tasrif opined that the oil and gas industry still has prospective opportunity in spite of the global market prioritizing the development of clean and renewable energy.

At the 2020 International Convention on Indonesian Upstream Oil and Gas (IOG 2020) held virtually on Wednesday, Tasrif stated that Indonesia had also developed clean energy, though it will not abandon the oil and gas sector.

"The oil and gas sector has played an important role to meet the energy demand for transportation and electricity as well as raw material in industrial development," he stated.

According to the National Energy Plan (RUEN), oil consumption is expected to rise by 139 percent, from 1.66 million to 3.97 million barrels of oil per day (bopd) in 2050.

Gas consumption is expected to increase 298 percent, from six thousand MMSCFD to 26 thousand MMSCFD in 2050.

"To meet the energy demand, Indonesia’s upstream oil and gas industry still holds vast potential. Only 20 out of the 128 oil and gas basins have begun production, and 68 basins had yet to be explored," he remarked.

Tasrif admitted that investment in the oil and gas industry came at a steep cost, carried high risk, and necessitated the application of advanced technology. (Antaranews)

EU Ambassador to ASEAN Igor Driesmans said the European Union rejects the militarization of the South China Sea and called on all parties to exercise restraint in the disputed waters.

"The result of the ASEAN and European Union ministerial meeting on Tuesday (12/1) is that the European Union emphasizes the importance of non-militarization and self-control regarding the South China Sea," said Igor Driesmans at a press conference in Jakarta, Wednesday.

He said it was important for all parties to follow the principles of non-militarization and self-control in dealing with tensions in the South China Sea.

The European Union underlines the importance of implementing the United Nations Convention for the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS) 1982.

"As well as freedom of navigation and flight in the South China Sea, "said Ambassador Igor.

The European Union, he continued, encourages negotiations towards preliminary conclusions of an effective and substantive Code of Conduct in the South China Sea in accordance with international law, including the 1982 UNCLOS.

"The European Union also encourages peaceful resolutions to resolve disputes in the South China Sea," he said.

Regarding the ASEAN and European Union ministerial meeting on Tuesday (1/12), Ambassador Igor said that the European Union and ASEAN also agreed to enhance dialogue partnerships as an effort to improve communication between leaders.

"The European Union and ASEAN will form stronger ties and create opportunities for more engagement among leaders. Currently, the European Union and ASEAN do not have regular meetings between leaders," he said.

Ambassador Igor revealed that a strong ASEAN is important for the European Union in supporting multilateralism and can bring stability to Asia and the rest of the world. (Antaranews)