The Indonesian Embassy in Berlin invited a number of journalists, including The Jakarta Post’s Dwi Atmanta, from Sept. 22 to 26 to observe the country’s preparations for its participation as the partner country in the Hannover Messe in April 2020.

The autumn winds, precisely as singer Paul Simon wrote, blew chilly and cold in Hannover. Under a morning drizzle, workers were seen moving dozens of giant wooden boxes into container trucks waiting outside giant halls at the city’s fairground.

Inside the halls, other workers wrapped up tools, machines and other metal equipment, while on the other side, forklifts and small trucks worked in tandem to collect exhibition panels.

All the items belonged to exhibitors participating in the recently concluded Exposition Mondiale de la Machine-Outil (EMO), one of the world’s leading metalworking trade shows regularly held in the German city.

Hannover, the capital of Lower Saxony state and home to 530,000 people, has a list of between 60 and 70 exhibitions on its yearly agenda. It has for decades been a meeting point between producers and the global supply chain, between policymakers of various countries and investors and between corporations that wish to partner in developing their businesses.

Among the many opportunities the city has to offer, Indonesia is particularly interested in the Hannover Messe, a trade show industry players from across the world cannot wait to take part in.

In fact, the Hannover Messe is an attraction. In the past few years, an average of 210,000 visitors from various nations have flocked to the 227,000 square meter exhibition ground, which features around 6,500 participants from more than 70 countries. Traders, key decision-makers and investors mingle and make deals during the five-day show.

It’s a one-stop shopping experience for those who really mean business and a low-hanging fruit opportunity for countries selected as official partners.

Previous partner countries, China in 2012, Russia in 2013, the Netherlands in 2014, India in 2015, the United States in 2016, Poland in 2017, Mexico in 2018 and Sweden in 2019, capitalized on the advantages on offer, which range from worldwide promotion to a giant pavilion to showcase their industries.

Next spring, from April 20 to 24, Indonesia will see for itself whether the organizer, Deutsche Messe, can repeat the success it has delivered for other countries during and after the annual show.

However, the Hannover Messe will be held against the backdrop of global uncertainty. Growth in major economies like the US, Europe and China is slowing, while the clash of the titans in the US-China trade war is protracting and threats from Brexit are looming.

The crunch time China is enduring, as seen in the halving of growth, will sooner or later impact Indonesia given the fact the world’s second-largest economy is the biggest trading partner of the Southeast Asian country.

To make matters worse, the US is moving to expand its barriers to other trade partners with which it incurs a trade deficit, including Indonesia.

These daunting external challenges aside, Indonesia has performed worse than its regional competitors in luring foreign investment. World Bank data show Indonesia’s foreign direct investment accounted for a mere 1.01 percent of its gross domestic product on average from 1981 to 2018, with a minimum of -2.76 percent in 2000 and a maximum of 2.92 percent in 2005.

Indonesia has maintained a growth rate of more than 5 percent thanks mostly to domestic consumption.

Industry Minister Airlangga Hartarto insists the Hannover Messe is an ideal platform for Indonesia to showcase its Industry 4.0 know-how and its prospects of becoming the biggest digital economy in Southeast Asia.

The German factor is another consideration for Indonesia as it prepares to be the partner country of the Hannover Messe for a second time after previously doing so in 1995. Germany has offered to help Indonesia develop its human capital for the fourth industrial revolution.

“The Hannover Messe is the birthplace of Industry 4.0. We, Indonesia and Germany, have faith in multilateralism and believe that technology and human resources development is key to winning the competition,” Airlangga said after a meeting with Lower Saxony Minister President Stephan Weil and Deutsche Messe CEO Jochen Köckler last week.

The trade show will give Indonesia a chance to promote its Making Indonesia 4.0 road map, through which the country will shift away from its dependence on commodities as the main driver of economic growth to manufacturing. For that reason, President Joko “Jokowi” Widodo will attend the event’s opening and is scheduled to hold talks with German Chancellor Angela Merkel on cooperation in the field of vocational education.

With or without Airlangga in the upcoming Cabinet, hopes abound that the trade show will mark a start to Indonesia’s bid to become the basis of German and European Industry 4.0. Airlangga’s optimism stems from the fact that many German investors have remained in Indonesia for 40 years.

Amid the economic doldrums, Indonesia’s economy has steadily expanded by 5 percent.

Assuming that Indonesia will take full advantage of its demographic bonus and considering its huge market, a number of studies have predicted the country to emerge as the 10th largest economy in the world by 2030 and the fourth largest by 2045.

Indonesian Ambassador to Germany Arif Havas Oegroseno, who played a crucial role in negotiating Indonesia’s selection as the partner country, deemed the Hannover Messe to be more than just a showcase of Industry 4.0. As a big marketplace, the Hannover Messe will enable Indonesia to talk about cooperation with countries that have not yet prepared for Industry 4.0.

“We are aiming at other potential markets, such as Africa. Many African businesspeople will come to Hannover. Although the region has not developed Industry 4.0 in a massive way, it provides land and markets for Indonesia,” Arif said.

Indonesia will showcase its priority sectors of food and beverage, textile and apparel, automotive, electronics and chemicals in Hannover, to be represented by about 100 exhibitors, ranging from big- and small-scale companies to start-ups.

As the partner country, Indonesia will set up its national pavilion in a 2,500 sqm space inside Hall 21 of Hannover’s fairground. The country will be given the spotlight and special privileges, such as promotions.

The pavilion will feature the Making Indonesia 4.0 road map, explaining how far its implementation has progressed and how the country’s vocational education system is driving its industrial competitiveness.

Seminars and forums for foreign investors will also be held in the pavilion.

However, Arif said that after the party ended, more challenges awaited. Learning from the 1995 event, follow-up measures will define Indonesia’s success post-Hannover Messe. Providing a friendly climate, legal certainty and political stability for investors are all necessities.

April, come Indonesia will, Paul Simon might say, to meet hopes that spring from Hannover.

Popular

Indonesia not affected by Southeast Asia-wide heat wave: BMKG

Residents fear for safety as Mount Ruang volcano erupts

In defense of Indonesian democracy