This month, the country got a perfect chance to show its openness to foreign cooperation after being named the official partner country for the 2023 Hannover Messe in Germany, becoming the first ASEAN country to do so.
Hannover Messe, based in the city of Hannover in the German state of Lower Saxony, is the world's leading trade fair for industry, and features 4 thousand companies from various fields that showcase their technologies and solutions for a connected and climate-neutral industry.
For this year's Hannover Messe, scheduled from April 17–21, 2023, Indonesia has established a 3 thousand-square-meter pavilion, of which at least 1,500 square meters has been allocated to hundreds of participating national co-exhibiting institutions and companies.
"With 157 co-exhibitors participating (at the Indonesian national pavilion) in an area of nearly 3 thousand square meters, it shows that Indonesia's participation is one of the biggest in the history of the Hannover Messe as an official country partner," Coordinating Minister for Economic Affairs, Airlangga Hartarto, said at an event at the Indonesian pavilion on Sunday (April 16).
The Indonesian pavilion has been divided into several exhibition zones: Zone A for companies active in sustainability and energy sectors, Zone B for the “Making Indonesia 4.0” exhibition and engineered parts and solutions, Zone C for state-owned enterprises, Zone D for investment/industrial parks and human capital, and the last zone is for Hannover Messe Display Categories.
According to the Ministry of Industry, Indonesia’s House of Representatives (DPR RI) approved a budget of Rp140 billion (US$9.48 million) for Indonesia's participation in the event.
Open to collaboration
During the Hannover Messe opening ceremony on Sunday, Widodo reiterated that Indonesia is open to cooperation and investment and urged all parties to collaborate to achieve common prosperity.
He further said that Indonesia’s strategic initiative of “Making Indonesia 4.0” is hugely relevant for the country, which is currently striving to transform its economy through innovation and technology.
Indonesia is currently pursuing the two major strategies of downstreaming and green economy, he informed adding, the country is open to investment and cooperation in developing those aspects.
With its abundant natural resources, demographic bonus, huge markets, and stable economy, Indonesia has the capital to become a major player in global industries, he noted.
Meanwhile, he said that Indonesia has a strong commitment to preserving environmental sustainability in development and has implemented concrete actions to fulfill its goals, including by halting environmental damage and restoring damaged forests.
"The deforestation rate has decreased significantly and is at its lowest in 20 years. Our forest fire rate has also decreased by 88 percent, and the rehabilitation of 600 thousand hectares of our forests, which is expected to be completed by 2024, is the world's largest," Widodo emphasized.
The President noted that by this year, at least 23 percent of Indonesia's energy will come from new and renewable resources, while all coal-fired power plants in the country will shut doors by 2025.
Indonesia is also keen to ensure that the energy transition continues to produce affordable energy for the people. However, the process will require significant innovation and funding, which could reach US$1 trillion by 2060, he highlighted.
Seeking investment commitment
Regarding the investment potential that Indonesia will enjoy through its participation in the 2023 Hannover Messe, Hartarto said that at least Rp30 trillion (US$2.03 billion) in investment would enter Indonesia following the signing of several agreements.
"We certainly expect that through the Hannover Messe, there will be even more investment," the coordinating minister added.
Meanwhile, Director General of Regional Resilience and International Industrial Access at the Industry Ministry, Eko S. A. Cahyanto, said that the investment commitment obtained by Indonesia during the event surpassed the target by more than 100 percent.
The director general said that after DPR RI approved the budget for Indonesia’s participation as the official partner country at the 2023 Hannover Messe, the ministry initially targeted an investment commitment of Rp14 trillion (US$948 million) or 100 times the budget.
Hence, the Rp30 trillion commitment achieved at the event at Hannover was exactly 214 times the budget, or more than 100 percent of the target, he affirmed.
Cahyanto also noted that in total, 19 cooperation agreements, comprising 3 government-to-business (G2B) agreements and 13 business-to-business (B2B) agreements, have been signed during the event so far and their number is expected to increase.
"One of Indonesia's participation targets, as a partner country at Hannover Messe 2023, is the realization of industry and foreign investment cooperation," the director general said.
The agreements signed on Sunday encompassed cooperation in semiconductors, solar power, medical devices, waste management, chemical industry, the development of CNC milling, Internet of Things (IoT), digital industry, and electric vehicle charging and battery systems.
Moreover, agreements were also signed for cooperation in other areas such as investment and industrial parks, energy sustainability and transition, human resources, as well as start-ups and innovation.
The signing of industry cooperation will result in several improvements and also open up broader industry market access, he remarked.
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Editor: Sri Haryati
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