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f Indonesia can meet its US$200 billion export target for this year, it will be the 21st country in the world to achieve such a tremendous export value in such a short amount of time, a trade official said.

Trade Ministry foreign trade director general Deddy Saleh said on Monday in Jakarta that by reaching the target, Indonesia would achieve the same record of a few countries such as India and Brazil that doubled their exports from $100 billion over a span of just five years.

“Our exports were $100 billion in 2006. If this year’s exports exceed $200 billion, Indonesia, like India and Brazil, can double their exports to $200 billion in five years,” he told reporters at his office.

Deddy added that if the exports reached the 2011 target, Indonesia could outperform other exporting countries in Asia such as Malaysia, Singapore and China, which doubled their export revenues to $200 billion in seven, 10 and six years, respectively.

Several developing countries such as Germany and the UK took longer, between 12 years and 14 years, respectively, to double their export revenues to $200 billion.

Trade Ministry data, shows total exports, which reached $100.8 billion, climbed sharply by 56.5 percent to $157.73 billion in 2010, which was an all-time high for the country’s trade.

Deddy’s optimism is backed by the Central Statistics Agency’s (BPS) projections released earlier this month, saying that the country’s exports would possibly reach a new record high of US$200 billion this year, because in the first half of this year, exports topped $98.64 billion, up 36.02 percent from $72.52 billion in the same period last year, and would likely expand faster in the second semester – a common pattern in its annual exports.

Earlier this year, the government has projected that the non-oil exports — the largest contributor to national export revenue — would reach $146 billion, a 15 percent increase from $127 billion in 2010.

“The trend shows that export value in the second semester will be higher compared to the first semester,” he said, confirming the BPS’s projection.

According to Deddy, there are currently only 20 countries in the world, comprising 12 developed and 8 developing nations, of which exports have surpassed $200 billion. Of those 20 countries, Belgium booked the fastest export growth, needing only three years to double its export revenue.

Despite the optimism, in terms of its overall export value, Indonesia still lags behind other neighboring countries in Southeast Asia. According to World Trade Organization data, Indonesia’s exports ranked fourth last year after Singapore’s $352 billion, Malaysia’s $199 billion and Thailand’s $195 billion.

Exports are one of the main drivers in Southeast Asia’s largest economy. According to recently-issued BPS data, during the first and second quarters of this year, exports contributed 25.4 percent and 27.3 percent to Indonesia’s gross domestic product (GDP), totaling Rp 1,738.2 trillion and Rp 1,811.1 trillion respectively.

During the first semester of this year, exports topped $98.64 billion, up 36.02 percent from $72.52 billion in the same period last year.

From January-June, non-oil and gas exports, which reached $79.06 billion, up by 33.2 percent from the same period in 2010, contributed 80.15 percent to the total exports in the first semester this year.

This year, the government has projected that the non-oil exports — still expected to be the largest contributor to national export totals — would reach $146 billion, a 15 percent increase from $127 billion in 2010.