MINISTER OF TRADE OPENING REMARKS 2016 WORKING MEETING MINISTRY OF TRADE JAKARTA, 27 TH JANUARY 2016

Transcription

1 MINISTER OF TRADE OPENING REMARKS 2016 WORKING MEETING MINISTRY OF TRADE JAKARTA, 27 TH JANUARY 2016 Greetings The Honorable: - Head of Commission VI DPR-RI; - Coordinating Minister for Economic Affairs; - Minister of Industry of the Republic of Indonesia or representatives; - Minister of Agriculture of the Republic of Indonesia or representatives; - Head of the Coordinating Investment Board (BKPM) or representatives; - Head of the National Board for the Placement and Protection of Indonesian Overseas Workers (BNP2TKI); - Echelon I and II Officials of the Ministry of Trade and related Ministries; - Indonesian Ambassador for WTO in Geneva and Head of the Indonesian Trade and Economy Office of Taipei; - Heads of Provincial and Regional Offices on Trade from throughout Indonesia; - Trade Representatives abroad (Trade Attaches, Trade Consulates, ITPC); - Representatives of Associations and Entrepreneurs; - Representatives of Academics; - Ladies and gentlemen. Introduction to Instructions: The topic The Modernization of Trade Infrastructure for Indonesia s Economy in the 21 st Century was carefully chosen based on the hope that we can all understand the new dynamics of the current global trade. Therefore, my opening remarks this time will be extensive, but I hope that it could be used as a basis for discussion to synchronize the perceptions between the central and local governments; as well as this year s and future s strategies in the environment of the Ministry of Trade, the working partners of local governments and the business world. 1

2 IMPORTANT POINTS: Trade Strategies in 2016: 1. I welcome 2016 with optimism, as the cabinet s economy team is becoming even more solid with the current perspective, policy direction, and the spirit of economic reform; 2. The Ministry of Trade as the leader of the trade sector emphasizes on three main policies in boosting Indonesia s economic growth, which consists of: (1) the effort to increase the growth of export performance and sustainable expansion of market access, without disregarding (3) good governance in the trade sector. 3. Therefore, there needs to be a serious effort to realize the supply-side reform. This means that the obstacles or hindrances of economic and trade growth needs to eliminated, and the Ministry of Trade is committed to abolish such barriers. Classic issues that are often raised these days are the supply of electricity and gas, the conditions of roads, bridges, and ports, as well as complicated and inefficient bureaucracy for permits; 4. The President of Indonesia set a target for Indonesia to rank 40 th in World Bank s ease of doing business list, to improve from last year s rank at What should we do? I believe we should continue on the momentum of the rationalization and simplification programs started in September This year it will be resumed in a greater scale to create a bigger impact, or big bang. Deregulation and debureaucratization are imperative to create a favorable climate for business and investment in Indonesia. 6. Good export-import facilitation is my goal; and in my perspective the Ministry of Trade has a big role in it. This can be realized by the following strategies: a. Simplifying and automatizing the bureaucratic culture, changing it into a culture of service and development. Many quality products cannot remain consistent, disqualifying them from entering the global supply chain. b. Focusing the Directorate General of National Export Development to support product development to prepare products for the global market. Likewise, the Directorate General of Foreign and Domestic Trades will also be focused on serving and facilitating business, including e-commerce and the development of traditional market. 2

3 c. Implementing INATRADE e-licensing to support Indonesia National Single Window (INSW); the implementation of a mandatory online system for the proposal of several types of trade permits; the implementation of e-ska (Certificate of Origins) for export documents. d. Applying the Self-Certification by officially appointing 15 exporters to attend the Self-Certification pilot project scheme within the scheme of ASEAN Trade in Goods Agreement (ATIGA); e. Ease of Import Export Destination Facility (KITE). This is essential in enhancing the competitiveness of Indonesian products abroad by way of the ease of importing raw materials 7. In Stage I of the Deregulation and Debureaucratization packages in September 2015, the Ministry of Trade has simplified the procedure for permits by issuing 24 Trade Minister Regulations; truncating 49 permits (28.9%) from the total of 169 export-import permits in the Ministry of Trade. 8. The 21 st century is the century of Service Trade: a. China has shifted its economy from manufacturing-based to services-oriented export. b. For Indonesia, the challenge for this year and the next one is developing the service industry, and I believe Indonesia is superior in this field. c. The basis of the service industry is Human Resources, and the quality of Indonesia s human resources is excellent. What needs to be boosted is creating more skilled workers in hospitality services, pilot services, cruise industry, automobile services, and finance sector. The cruise and reinsurance services need to be paced harder because both greatly impact the total trade balance. 9. The infrastructure of domestic trade: a. The target is to keep inflation at approximately 3.3% as last year. b. Thus the prices of staple food need to be constantly monitored to maintain its supply in the market. We try to manage the business administration and trade efficiency, both intra and inter insulars, while persistently thinking of breakthroughs to ensure that supply can meet the existing demands. International trade negotiations In the field of international trade negotiations, this year the Ministry of Trade will expand the market access through the FTA-CEPA cooperation with the EU, EFTA, Turkey, and Australia. In addition, the Ministry will also maximize 3

4 Indonesia s participation in AEC as an export destination market and new job opportunities. In this opportunity, I d like to invite everyone here to contemplate the essence of this trade agreement. As the President has stated, FTA is inevitable. If we want to succeed, we need to compete and embrace change, including changes in trade. Indonesia s competitors have established various bilateral, regional, and plulilateral agreements, and if we do not catch up, we will be left behind. Indonesia is a country of winners, thus the Trade Ministry is currently working hard to reach various agreements so that we can soon feel the benefits. Branding and Integrating Trade, Tourism, and Investment (TTI) Activities It is time for Indonesia to upgrade our branding. The brand Indonesia should be able to boost the image of Indonesia s products, investment climate, and tourist destinations. Therefore, I call for all Heads of Provincial and Regional Trade Offices present here to always include the word INDONESIA in every product, such as Product of Indonesia or Made in Indonesia. This custom is necessary, not only as a technical requirement for export, but also to increase our pride to see Indonesian products in the world market. We hope that with the Indonesian Promotion Board (BPI), promotion programs can be more effective in supporting our national branding. Last: The Fourth Industrial Revolution I recently returned from the Annual Meeting World Economic Forum in Davos, which this year highlighted the theme Fourth Industrial Revolution, which is how the industrial revolution can change production, distribution, and consumption patterns; and how to face future challenges. At the moment, the world is focused on facing the most recent industrial revolution, where the roles of artificial intelligence, robot, technology, social media, and cyber system usage will be central to us. In addressing this trend, Indonesia must not be passive. Instead, we need to adapt and step up to enter this new dynamic. It is my hope that all Trade Attaches, ITPC, and Heads of Provincial and Regional Trade Offices can make the effort to learn more about the social media not only as a source of entertainment but to capitalize it more to reach a broader exposure and promote our products and services. With the 4

5 Internet, the clear-cut borders between countries fade away, opening our market access to the world. Make use of that. I have asked the Head of Public Relations Center to set up and manage a Facebook group where we can exchange ideas, communicate, inspire, and learn from each other. In the midst of this competitive era, let s help collaborate to help each other. (While launching the Trade Ministry s Facebook page) Finally: We humbly ask for the support of all stakeholders (related Ministries or Institutions, local governments, and entrepreneurs) Closing: As a closing statement, we hope that the presence of the Coordinating Minister for Economic Affairs at this year s Ministry of Trade Working Meeting can energize us all with spirit and fresh inspirations. (Ask the Coordinating Minister to give key instructions while opening the Working Meeting). Thank you and good morning to you all. Thomas Trikasih Lembong Minister of Trade 5