President Jokowi Calls for Incentives to Stimulate Investment
President Jokowi receives a report from Cabinet Secretary Pramono Anung before presiding over a Limited Meeting, at the Presidential Office, Jakarta, on Tuesday (20/2). (Photo by: Jay/ Public Relations Division)
To boost investment in the country, improvements and innovations in licensing services for investors have to be made and regulations that hamper investment have to be cut, President Joko Jokowi Widodo said at a Limited Meeting on Investment Incentives at the Presidential Office, Jakarta, Tuesday (20/2).
The President also cited the examples of other countries that have been vying to offer incentives to lure investors to invest in their countries. According to the President, countries in the likes of India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, and Sri Lanka, which he has recently visited, are offering various incentives to attract investors.
“(They are) very progressive, very attractive, especially in promoting the ease of doing business in their countries. They offer very lucrative incentive schemes to investors,” the President added.
Should Indonesia does not make improvements, innovations in licensing services, nor cut the regulations that hamper investment, the President, added, it will be even more left behind.
Nevertheless, President Jokowi also admitted that several Ministries have already cut the red tape on regulations and hopes that such measures be imposed on provinces, districts, and cities level.
Moreover, the President also wants that calculations be done to what incentives can be offered to investors – both domestic and foreign investors – for example, regarding tax holiday or tax allowance, which are more attractive for investment.
“I ask this be done immediately and calculated jointly by Minister of Finance, all relevant Ministers, and the Coordinating Ministers. I was already informed that incentive schemes for tax holiday, tax allowance are actually already in place but they have not been used to the full. Therefore, it needs to be evaluated,” the President said.
For other investment incentives that have been launched in the Governments previous policy packages, President Jokowi wants them to be monitored, particularly regarding the execution on the ground as they are parts of the Governments measures to improve the countrys the ease of doing business index.
The President also claimed to have been informed by Coordinating Minister for the Economy Darmin Nasution on the finalization of the single submission system by March. “I think this will accelerate the process of licensing in Indonesia,” the President concluded.
For the record, the single submission system is intended to ease the licensing process and significantly cut down the waiting period for businesses.
The Limited Meeting was attended by Coordinating Minister for Political, Legal, and Security Affairs Wiranto, Coordinating Minister for the Economy Darmin Nasution, Coordinating Minister for Human Development and Culture Puan Maharani, Coordinating Minister for Maritime Affairs Luhut B. Panjaitan, Cabinet Secretary Pramono Anung, Presidential Chief of Staff Moeldoko, Minister of Finance Sri Mulyani, Minister of State-owned Enterprises Rini Soemarno, Minister of Transportation Budi K. Sumadi, Minister of Tourism Arief Yahya, Minister of Industry Airlangga Hartarto, Minister of Energy and Mineral Resources Ignatius Jonan, Minister of Agrarian and Spatial Planning/Head of the National Land Agency (BPN) Sofyan Djalil, Minister of Foreign Affairs Retno Marsudi, Minister of Law and Human Rights Yasonna Laoly, Minister of Health Nila F. Moeloek, Minister of the Environment and Forestry Siti Nurbaya, Minister of Agriculture Amran Sulaiman, Minister of Research and Technology and Higher Education M. Nasir, Minister of Manpower Hanif Dhakiri, and Head of Indonesian Investment Coordinating Board (BKPM) Thomas Lembong. (FID/SM/JAY/ES) (MUR/EP/YM/Naster).
