Jakarta hosts global investment forum

The Jakarta Post ,  Jakarta   |  Thu, 08/23/2007 1:23 PM  |  Jakarta

The Jakarta Post, Jakarta

To attract investors, particularly those from overseas, the city administration plans to make the process of applying for a business application easier through a new program to be launched Thursday at the opening of the Jakarta Global Investment Forum.

""It used to take 150 days to arrange a business license, but now, under the One-Gate Service program, it will only take about 50 days,"" Samsudin Mustafa, the head of promotion at the Jakarta Investment Board and Regional Business and Property Empowerment, said Wednesday.

He said the four-day forum called Jakvest -- which will take place at the Semanggi Expo venue in Sudirman Central Business District, South Jakarta -- is expected to provide prospective investors with information about the city's investment potency.

""So they will be interested in investing their money here. This is expected to have a good impact for the country,"" he said.

The upcoming event -- last year it was named Jivest -- will feature exhibitions of local small, medium and large enterprises from 17 provinces, 33 regencies and six cities in the country as well as international participants such as the Indonesian-Korean Association, the British Chamber of Commerce, the Embassy of Iran, the Embassy of the Netherlands and the Indonesian French Chamber of Commerce and Industry.

The investment board will invite potential investors from countries like Hong Kong, Malaysia, Singapore, Australia and a number in the European Union.

Besides the exhibition, the board will also hold business forums featuring speakers such as Minister of State-owned Enterprises Sofyan Djalil, head of the National Development Planning Board Paskah Suzetta and Indonesian Employers Association chairman Sofyan Wanandi.

According to the investment board, in 2006 the city saw Rp 12 trillion (US$13.04 million) and 263 projects from foreign investors, and Rp 1.8 trillion and 21 projects from domestic investment.

Most of them were generated from service sectors. Samsudin hoped Jakvest would encourage other regions to conduct similar efforts in order to create a conducive investment atmosphere in the country.

""As a capital city, Jakarta should be a pioneer, stimulating other regions to draw as many investors as possible,"" he said.

Law No.25/2007 on capital investment says the country allows regions to manage their own economic activities independently, including making efforts to develop a conducive business atmosphere through regulations or infrastructures to boost investment in the regions. (13)

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