JAKARTA: Indonesian President Joko Widodo is targeting almost $6bn in projects to expand ports across the world’s biggest archipelago, where investors are deterred by logistics costs that amount to a quarter of the economy.
Widodo, known as Jokowi, plans to expand five ports on the nation’s main islands, seeking to reduce shipping delays and boost trade in a country that would stretch from New York to London, Coordinating Minister for Maritime Affairs Indroyono Soesilo said. The government will also cut red tape that keeps yachts and cruise liners away, he said.
Improving maritime infrastructure is one of Jokowi’s main strategies to reinvigorate the economy, which is growing at the slowest pace since the global financial crisis. At his inauguration on October 20, Jokowi likened himself to a “captain trusted by the people” and said it was time for Indonesia to return to “Jalesveva Jayamahe,” the naval motto meaning “in the seas we will triumph”. “We would like to provide good logistics access from Sabang to Merauke,” Soesilo said, referring to the country’s westernmost and easternmost cities. The government needs 70 trillion rupiah ($5.8bn) to expand five major ports in north Sumatra, Jakarta, east Java, south Sulawesi and Papua to serve large vessels and build feeder lines for smaller ports, said Soesilo.
Jokowi has met investors from China, Africa and the US who want him to build ports, the minister said. China plans a $16.3bn fund to finance infrastructure linking its markets to three continents as President Xi Jinping pushes forward with his plans to revive the centuries-old Silk Road trading route, according to officials who participated in drafting the plan. The sea makes up two-thirds of the territory of Indonesia, and Jokowi wants to use it to achieve economic growth of more than 7 percent in three years. WP-BLOOMBERG
