Samiran, the head of Industry and Trade Cooperative Office of West Sulawesi, said that the design of the rattan industry and the environmental impact analysis (AMDAL) have been completed. In addition, the estimated budget for construction has been set aside.
West Sulawesi has been proclaimed as a rattan industry area by the Forestry Minister, Zulkifli Hasan, the Trade Minister, Gita Wiryawan and the Industry Minister, MS. Hidayat, during a visit to the province last February. The rattan industry will be spread across four hectares of land, said Samiran.
The government, through the Forestry Ministry, has established West Sulawesi`s wet forest, which covers 12,000 hectares, as a key resource for the rattan industry.
Moreover, the Governor of West Sulawesi, Anwar Adnan Saleh, said that rattan is a long-term industry that needs to be developed in the province, to improve the local economy.
"West Sulawesi is an ideal location for the rattan industry, since the region is one of the largest rattan producers in Indonesia. The region produces approximately 50,000 tonnes of rattan every year," Governor Saleh said.
The Industry Ministry has conducted research on domestic and international markets and has generated a list of 13 countries in Europe and Asia which are keen on purchasing rattan from West Sulawesi.
(A059/INE/o001)
Editor: Suryanto
Copyright © ANTARA 2012
