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Eximbank helps boost palm oil exports in Papua though sharia financing
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Finance Minister Sri Mulyani Indrawati (JP/Anton Hermansyah)
I
ndonesia Eximbank, also known as the Indonesian Export Financing Institution (LPEI), signed on Wednesday a sharia financing agreement with plantation company PT MedcoPapua Hijau Selaras (MPHS) in an effort to boost exports of palm oil products from Manokwari, West Papua.
Under the cooperation, LPEI, which was established by the Finance Ministry, will provide a sharia financing scheme of Rp 150 billion (US$10.34 million) as well as consultation to MPHS.
Finance Minister Sri Mulyani Indrawati said LPEI was established to help provide export financing with the hope it would boost foreign exchange reserves for the state.
“I have to thank LPEI, which has used the resources in Manokwari to boost exports that will have positive impacts on the people in the surrounding areas,” said Sri Mulyani in a press statement issued by the ministry.
Sri Mulyani stressed that LPEI did not only focus on profit, but would bring benefits to the people in the form of job creation, women empowerment and public infrastructure development, among other benefits.
The press statement said that since 2010, MPHS had cooperated with 11 village cooperatives and employed 478 farmers. Until August 2016, the company had developed 2,684.65 hectares of plantation and employed some 1,500 people.
Currently, MPHS exports its products through PT Sinar Mas Agro Resources and Technology and Wings Group.
The Finance Ministry expects the financing to help the MPHS improve the quality of its products as the company was eying Indonesian Sustainable Palm Oil (ISPO) certificates, which require companies to carry out exports without cooperation with other parties. (bbn)
