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Jakarta Post

French President, FM to visit Indonesia

Stefani Ribka (The Jakarta Post)
Jakarta
Wed, February 22, 2017

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French President, FM to visit Indonesia From Right to Left: France Ambassador to Indonesia Jean-Charles Berthonnet, Mouvement des Entreprises de France (MEDEF) chairman Pierre Gattaz, MEDEF's France-Indonesia Business Council chairman Philippe Louis-Dreyfus and Special representative of the French government for ASEAN Philippe Varin during a media briefing in Jakarta on Feb. 21. France has stated its growing interest to invest more in Indonesia. (JP/Stefani Ribka)

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rench President Francois Hollande and Foreign Minister Jean-Marc Ayrault are scheduled to visit Indonesia on Mar. 29 and Feb. 28, respectively, the French Embassy in Indonesia has announced.

Economic diplomacy, including the country’s interest in renewable energy, is the main purpose of their visits, the embassy says.

“The economic diplomacy is very high in the agenda of the [Foreign] Minister [and the President],” Ambassador Jean-Charles Berthonnet told a media briefing on Tuesday.

Ayrault is scheduled to meet his Indonesian counterpart, Foreign Minister Retno Marsudi as well as Energy and Mineral Resources Minister Ignasius Jonan.

The minister along with some French companies will also launch an informal club to promote renewable energy in Indonesia.

The largest French business lobby group Mouvement des Entreprises de France (MEDEF) brought 34 company members to deepen its knowledge about Indonesia’s investment climate on Feb. 20 to 21.

“We never have as many delegations as today coming to Indonesia for the past decades. There’s growing interest from France government and businesspeople toward Indonesia, which is seen as more open to foreign investors today,” said Philippe Louis-Dreyfus, Chairman of the France-Indonesia Business Council of MEDEF on the briefing

Louis-Dreyfus estimates investment from the France will jack up significantly next year but will be subject to the country’s internal situation this year, after the Presidential election in May.

Today, there are about 220 French companies in Indonesia, running in various sectors from renewable energy, automotive, construction, transportation, food and tourism to finance consulting. (bbn)

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