Indonesia to create economic growth centers beyond Java

National Development Planning Minister Bambang Brodjonegoro (Antara/Audy Alwi)

National Development Planning Minister Bambang Brodjonegoro has said that the government is committed to creating new centers of economic growth outside Java in its effort to reducing economic disparities between Java and other regions.

Bambang, who is also head of the National Development Planning Agency (Bappenas), pointed out that 60 percent of the country’s economy was based in Java, 20 percent in Sumatra and the remaining 20 percent in other regions.

“Therefore, we have to create new centers of growth outside Java,” the minister said in Jakarta on Tuesday, as quoted by kontan.co.id. He made the statement at a press conference on the Indonesian Development Forum (IDF), which Australian Ambassador to Indonesia Gary Quinlan also attended.

Bambang said the government had three main programs to improve economic activities in regions outside Java:

First, accelerate development in those regions that possessed strong economic potential by creating economic growth centers in metropolitan areas; second, focus on creating growth centers in both villages and urban areas; and third, accelerate infrastructure development and improving basic services in frontier, outlying and least developed regions while accelerating borderland development to encourage local initiatives and innovations.

Meanwhile, Quinlan said Australia was committed to helping Indonesia reduce economic disparities among its regions. He and would carry out a study on the disparity between Java and Sulawesi as an initial step to reduce disparity. (bbn)  

Source: http://www.thejakartapost.com