New Opportunities in Eastern Indonesia

MEDIA RELEASE

Released By:
Downer

A range of potential business opportunities for
Australian businesses in the Australia Indonesia Development Area (AIDA) --or
easternregion of Indonesia have been identified in a new economic
study.

I had the pleasure today of launching the report
'Opportunities in AIDA: Building on Contrasts and Complementarities', prepared
by a consulting team led by the Australian National University.

The study identified opportunities in sectors such as
agriculture, fisheries and aquaculture, tourism, education and health services,
light manufacturing, infrastructure and oil, gas and mining.

It also highlighted new, longer-term opportunities
that have been created by the fundamental changes occurring in the Indonesian
economy, including deregulation and currency realignment, and that Australian
business should be positioning itself to take advantage of these
opportunities.

The study found that business opportunities derive
from the strong complementarities between Australian technologies, capital,
management and marketing skills, and the cheaper inputs of land, labour and
mineral, agricultural, marine and other natural resources that are available in
the Indonesian provinces in AIDA.

It has pointed out that the potential for trade and
investment growth in AIDA would not be realised without close cooperation
between the Australian and Indonesian governments and business communities. It
noted that regulatory constraints could be addressed in the short term, and
there was scope for the AIDA region to be made more attractive to foreign
investors through improved official Indonesian investment-related procedures and
support services.

I launched the AIDA concept with the Indonesian
Coordinating Minister for Production and Distribution, Dr Hartarto, in Ambon in
April 1997. It is designed to promote growth in two-way private sector trade and
investment in the AIDA region, which covers all of Indonesia except Java and
Sumatra.

AIDA is Indonesia's first sub-regional economic
cooperation area involving a non-ASEAN state.