The agreement will offer remarkable opportunities for both Indonesia and EU to bolster a more secured economy and boost investment of member countries into Indonesia.
Jakarta (ANTARA) - The Indonesia-European Union Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (IEU-CEPA) is expected to help boost investment of EU countries into Indonesia, an official of the National Development Planning (PPN) Ministry/National Development Planning Agency (Bappenas) stated.

“The agreement will offer remarkable opportunities for both Indonesia and EU to bolster a more secured economy and boost investment of member countries into Indonesia,” the ministry’s economic sector deputy, Amalia Adininggar Widyasanti, stated during the CEPA Roadshow and Business Forum East Kalimantan televised here on Tuesday.

Widyasanti noted that the pandemic had stalled Indonesia's push to escape the middle-income trap.


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The country’s economy had contracted by 2.1 percent in 2020. However, its economic condition improved in the second quarter of 2021, as indicated by an economic growth of 7.1 percent as compared to the corresponding quarter last year, Widyasanti remarked.

“We see that the Indonesian government is not only keen on economic recovery, but it also aims to boost the economy to grow faster than before the pandemic,” she highlighted.

Hence, she noted that the government was making efforts to realize the 2045 Indonesian Vision to become a high-income country.

Six strategies focus on achieving the goals: improving human resource quality, increasing productivity in economic sectors, boosting digital transformation, implementing green economy, integrating domestic economy, and relocating the capital city.

“Relocating the capital city from Jakarta to Kalimantan will offer more benefits for us since we can boost efforts to support a sustainable economy,” Widyasanti noted.

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Kalimantan relies on natural resources, so far, such as coal and palm oil, thereby necessitating economic diversification, she stated.

“EU countries should view them as opportunities, especially to develop the manufacturing sector, which will add economic value,” Widyasanti pointed out.

She expressed optimism that both Indonesia and EU countries would harness the cooperation optimally in a bid to help support inclusive and sustainable development in Indonesia.

On the occasion, EU Ambassador to Indonesia and Brunei Darussalam, Vincent Piket, welcomed the investment offers.

“The European Union is not only focusing on the manufacturing sector but also on the knowledge, technology, and digital industry. The agreement will offer new opportunities to invest and enable bilateral dialog between the EU countries and East Kalimantan,” he remarked.


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Translator: Juwita Trisna Rahayu
Editor: Fardah Assegaf
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