D

span class="inline inline-left">Diamond jubilee: Indonesian Foreign Minister Marty Natalegawa (right) and Canadian Ambassador to Indonesia Mackenzie Clugston launch a logo to commemorate 60 years of Indonesian and Canadian relations during a celebration on Wednesday in Jakarta. JP/Wendra AjistyatamaThe Canadian government plans to increase its investments in Indonesia, particularly in South Sulawesi, marking 60 years of bilateral relations between the two countries.

The Canadian Embassy in Indonesia sent 11 Canadian businesspeople to South Sulawesi to learn about business opportunities in the province.

“We have brought 11 delegates from different companies because we want to advance cooperation between our two countries by adding to our investments, particularly in South Sulawesi,” the Canadian Embassy’s trade division chief, Richard Bale, said on Wednesday at the South Sulawesi governor’s official residence in Makassar.

Bale said that the businesspeople would stay in Makassar for two days to discuss cooperation opportunities in various sectors, such as mining, agriculture and education, at a business forum.

A number of Canadian companies are operating in South Sulawesi, including nickel producer PT Vale Indonesia (previously known as PT Inco) — which has operated in the province for 43 years — and insurance company Manulife.

South Sulawesi Governor Syahrul Yasin Limpo welcomed the plan, saying that it highlighted the good reputation the province had gained and also meant there may be opportunities for the province to become an investment destination in the global community.

“We are open to both foreign and domestic investors as long as they comply with regional regulations. We need investment to improve welfare for locals,” Syahrul said.

Separately in Jakarta, the Canadian Embassy hosted on Wednesday the celebration of the 60th anniversary of Canada-Indonesia diplomatic relations at the Canadian ambassador’s official residence in Kebayoran Baru.

“Canada and Indonesia have strong and longstanding ties in various areas from development, trade and investment to collaboration on human rights and religious freedoms — 60 years is a long time. This partnership continues to grow in stature and depth,” Canadian Ambassador to Indonesia Mackenzie Clugston said in his opening remarks.

“Indonesia has been the largest Canada export market in the Southeast Asian region and is home to a considerable amount of Canadian direct investments.”

The event, which was attended by Foreign Minister Marty Natalegawa, friends and partners of Canada in Indonesia, including government officials, business representatives and civil society, marked the launch of a series of activities, including events in Sulawesi this month and an international conference on multiculturalism in Jakarta in March.

Marty said that the bilateral relations between the two countries had developed in a significant bilateral dimension.

“The trade figures between the two countries over the past five years have grown on average around 8 percent every year and the figure for last year was especially robust, where we enjoyed an increase of some 65 percent in our trade figures,” Marty said.

Total trade between the two countries reached C$2.87 billion (US$2.87 billion) in the first 11 months of 2011. This represents a 41 percent increase over 2010, when total trade reached C$2.03 billion.