"We have so far ignored them and never given them attention while the fact is that two thirds of the Indonesian territory are waters and it is a huge potential," jokowi said.Jakarta (ANTARA News) - President Joko Widodo said clusters of islands and vast waters in Indonesia could be used as one of the main axis for advancing the country.
"We have so far ignored them and never given them attention while the fact is that two thirds of the Indonesian territory are waters and it is a huge potential," he said in an interview with ANTARA, Televisi Republik Indonesia and Radio Republic Indonesia at his office here on Wednesday.
President Jokowi as he is also called said that government has now decided to make the maritime sector as one of the main sectors for development in view of its potential.
"We wish to start paying attention to it, develop it physically and build shipyards as interconnection between the islands is very important in addition to maritime education," he said.
He said one way to boost the countrys economic growth was infrastructure development to smooth distribution of goods by land and sea.
"Infrastructure such as toll roads, ports, railway lines and transportation facilities will be able to connect islands," he said.
He said the government would build ports so that cost of transportation would be cheaper.
"This is a big project. We will prepare the infrastructure," he said.
He said among the big ports to be built are Kuala Tanjung measuring 2,000 hectares, Tanjung Priok whose capacity will be increased to accommodate bigger flows of goods, Teluk Lamong in Surabaya, Makassar port in South Sulawesi and Sorong port in Papua.
"This is a huge project in the maritime sector. It will not only cover physical but also cultural, educational and other maritime-related elements," he said.(*)
Editor: Heru Purwanto
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