Indonesian President Joko Widodo called for more yen investments on Tuesday (March 24) in a speech before Japanese business leaders in Tokyo.
Widodo, on the third day of his Japan tour, focused on business diplomacy as he urged nearly 1,000 businessmen and women to increase their investment in Indonesia, a total of 4.7 billion US dollars in 2013 according to Japanese Foreign Ministry source.
“Foreign investment to Indonesia continues to grow each and every year. Japan is in second place in terms of the amount of investment among countries in 2014, and I’m confident to say that Japan will be the number one in 2015,” Widodo said in the forum organized by Japan External Trade Organization (JETRO) using power point presentations and a laser pen.
Southeast Asia’s largest economy is heavily reliant on offshore funding to meet growth targets and undertake infrastructure projects, with foreign investors holding nearly 40 percent of 1,292 trillion rupiah ($98 billion) in outstanding government bonds.
“We appreciate your investment today, and we look forward to another year of vigorous business investment from you,” Widodo said.
The former mayor of the city of Solo and governor of the capital, Jakarta, came into office in October pledging to bring clean, effective government in one of the world’s most corrupt nations.
Among his priorities are getting to grips with slowing growth in the resource-rich country, as well as deteriorating state finances, a heavy subsidy bill and flagging investor interest.
Widodo will meet Japanese lawmakers on Tuesday evening before he visit to Toyota Motor Corp’s headquarters in Aichi Prefecture on Wednesday (March 25). He will also visit China immediately after his stop in Japan.
(Reuters)
