On the13th of August, a conference, the "Prospects of trade and economic cooperation between Russia and Indonesia" was held online at the MCCI.
"In Russia and Indonesia, the interest in mutually beneficial cooperation is only growing. I very much hope that it will be afforded concrete and constructive projects. Russian companies are ready for Indonesia’s market not with simple, standard "buy and sell" projects, but with technological solutions that can be very interesting, beneficial and lucrative for our Indonesian partners.
The MCCI has paid an increased attention towards cooperation with Indonesia, as evidenced by the existence of a special Commission, dedicated to working with this country. Today, in the conditions of limited contacts, mobility and the suspension of a number of important projects, the time has come to define the directions and establishing partnerships, communications and technological links that can be created between Russian and Indonesian businesses. We would like to foment a system of trust in our relations in order to become only stronger," Mr. Suren Vardanyan, the MCCI’s Vice President, said in his opening speech.
The interest, regarding cooperation for both countries remains, despite the coronovirus crisis, although the summit meetings had to be postponed indefinitely, said the Counsellor and Envoy of the Embassy of the Russian Federation in the Republic of Indonesia, Mr. Oleg Kopylov. According to him, about 10 various legal documents are ready for signing in the presence of the Heads of State today. Their signing will signify a new phase in the Russian-Indonesian relations - the transition to a strategic partnership. "Russia and Indonesia have no political differences, there exists a mutual regard and appreciation”, - declared the speaker.
It is necessary to raise the level of economic comprehension to the level of political interactions, despite the current conditions and it is not easy to do so. The range for cooperation between the two countries is huge - it ranges from space and nuclear power to petrochemistry, Internet technologies, advanced methods of education and agriculture. Also of interest is the project of relocation of the Indonesian capital, which will entail the development of housing and utilities, smart-city technologies, etc.
"This conference is an important part of the events dedicated to the 70th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between Russia and Indonesia," said Mr. Aziz Nurvahudi, the Charge d'Affaires of the Republic of Indonesia to the Russian Federation. According to him, the trade turnover between our countries in 2018 amounted to more than $3 billion, however, in 2019 it decreased to $2.4 billion.
"We are confident that we will be able to raise the trade level by joint efforts, since today's situation does not reflect the potential of our two countries’ efforts," Mr. Nurvahyudi said and noted that it is necessary to reduce trade barriers and to simplify bureaucratic procedures.
The Director of the Department of Asia, Africa and Latin America of the Ministry of Industry and Trade of the Russian Federation, Mr. Sergey Nosov, also stated that it is necessary to increase the level of trade between the two countries, so that it corresponds to the current potential, and expand diversification in trade relations, increasing the number of products with high added value.” The speaker emphasized that the role of Chambers of Commerce is very important in the search for new alternatives and ways to continue dialogue and find equitable solutions for business.
The Chairman of the Jakarta Chamber of Commerce and Industry, Ms. Diana Devi, said that three years ago, an agreement on cooperation was signed between the Moscow Chamber of Commerce and Industry and Jakarta Chamber of Commerce and Industry. Currently, rigorous work is underway to increase the volume of supply of goods, produced by the Indonesian capital's manufacturers to the Russian and, in particular, to Moscow’s market. In the second quarter of this year, in Jakarta, there is a decline in economic development of 8%. However, the telecommunications industry, remittance systems, healthcare and education are showing growth. Ms. Devi expressed confidence that by mutual efforts, the volume of trade relations between Russia and Indonesia will be restored and increased.
The Governor of North Kalimantan Province, Mr. Iriyanto Lambreie, spoke about investment opportunities in the region he leads, where plantation and fishing industries, palm oil production, mining and energy industries are developing and where there are significant natural gas reserves. Economic growth in the province, even during the coronovirus crisis, is higher than the national average. According to Mr. Lambreie, the transfer of the capital to Kalimantan Island also presents the region with many opportunities for additional development. "We invite Russian partners as investors in a wide range of cooperation projects", - announced the speaker.
The Chairman of the Trade Representation of the Russian Federation in the Republic of Indonesia, Mr. Sergey Rossomakhov, spoke about the volumes and structure of the Russian-Indonesian trade turnover, noting promising areas of cooperation and expressed a hope to raise the volume of trade turnover up to $5 trillion by 2023. He brought attention to the fact that "We are ready to assist companies of both countries in their work”.
Торговый представитель Республики Индонезия в Российской Федерации Фарид Амир сделал акцент на проблемах, с которыми сталкиваются бизнесмены обеих стран (географическая удаленность, отсутствие зон свободной торговли, недостаток информации, логистическая проблема, проблема оптимизации национальных брендингов компаний и т.д.) и также выразил готовность помогать предпринимателям обеих стран.
Mr. Farid Amir, the Trade Representative of the Republic of Indonesia in the Russian Federation, highlighted the problems faced by businessmen of both countries (geographical remoteness, lack of free trade zones, information, logistics’ problems, the problem of optimisation of national branding of companies, etc.) and also expressed readiness to help entrepreneurs of both countries.
Mr. Mikhail Kuritsyn, the Executive Director of the Business Council for Cooperation with Indonesia of the Chamber of Commerce and Industry of Russia, spoke about the Council's activities, emphasizing its close cooperation with the Moscow Chamber of Commerce and Industry, and defined the prospects for the Russian-Indonesian economic relations, while pointing out the problems to be solved.
The General Director of "ECOFO" (a company, member of the Moscow Chamber of Commerce and Industry), Mr. Alexander Moiseev, talked about mobile complexes developed by the company for recycling plastic wastes and rubber products. "The government of Indonesia has adopted the national program for plastic waste reduction and we would be glad to join it", - he noted.
The PT ’s Director, Mr., Pertiwi Mandiri Rainer Prakuso Tobing, noted that "The development potential between our countries is enormous”, and that Indonesia is particularly interested in Russian investments in its national tourism. Besides, Russia, he said, could establish export of its goods to the ASEAN countries (Association of Southeast Asian Nations) through Indonesia.
Mr. Alexander Popov, the Chairman of the MCCI Commission on Foreign Economic Cooperation with partners from Indonesia, noted that Indonesia is likely to be interested in the prospects of implementing the recently developed and registered Russian coronavirus vaccine, as well as the increased supply of medical equipment and various testing systems. He expressed hope for growth of both mutual trade turnover and investment opportunities between our countries.
Ms. Maidi Catherine Lengkei, the General Secretary of the Indonesian Association for Nickel Mining (APNI), gave an extensive presentation on the development of Indonesia's nickel industry (the country has 24% of the world's nickel reserves) and its investment potential.
Mr. Aleksey Kochin, the Executive Director of AlkaTek LLC, spoke about the creation of a consortium of the leading Russian power equipment manufacturers and a number of projects that they can offer to Indonesia. These are, to name a few, construction of all types of coal-fired power plants, projects of palm oil waste utilization, construction of mobile power plants running on liquefied natural gas.
Taking into consideration the interest shown in the current event, Mr. Vardanyan promised to continue holding conferences to enhance the cooperation with Indonesia. He urged both Russian and Indonesian entrepreneurs, interested in cooperation, to apply to the MCCI and promised comprehensive assistance.