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Tag: Indonesia

  • Tata Motors signs MoU with PT Pindad to sell armoured vehicles in Indonesia

    Tata Motors signs MoU with PT Pindad to sell armoured vehicles in Indonesia

    Tata Motors and PT Pindad have signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) for cooperation to explore market potential of Tata Armoured Vehicles in Indonesia and other regions of ASEAN.

    The MoU also includes a study to check the feasibility of locally assembling Tata Armoured Vehicles at PT Pindad’s facility, in Bandung in West Java province of Indonesia.

    PT Pindad is an Indonesian state-owned enterprise specialising in military and commercial products.

    Commenting on the occasion, Biswadev Sengupta, president director of Tata Motors Indonesia, a subsidiary of Tata Motors – Agent licensee (APM) of Tata Motors brand in Indonesia, said, “This is a very important milestone for Tata Motors operations in Indonesia and is a matter of pride to be able to co-operate with PT Pindad, which is held in high esteem by the Indonesian community. I am sure that through this arrangement, we can create a lot of value in Indonesia, a market which we are committed to in the long term.”

    “This foray into the defense business in Indonesia, is in continuation with the strides made in the logistics business in the country, where more than 3000 Tata vehicles are already on the road, covering pickups, light trucks, buses and heavy trucks,” added Biswadev.

    PT Pindad provides the main weapon systems (Alat Utama Sistem Senjata or Alutsista) required to support independence in defence and security of the Republic of Indonesia. Furthermore, PT Pindad (Persero) also produces several industrial products for other aspects such as transportation and commercial explosives. Its activities cover design, development, engineering and fabrication as well as maintenance.

    Tata Motors has been associated with the country’s off-road defence and security forces, since 1958 and has supplied over 110,000 vehicles to the Indian military and paramilitary forces, so far. The company exports its range of defence vehicles to the SAARC, ASEAN and African regions.

  • World Bank approves loan for Indonesia`s logistics sector

    World Bank approves loan for Indonesia`s logistics sector

    The Executive Board of the World Bank has approved a US$400 million Development Policy Loan for the Indonesias Logistics Reform, which will be used to improve the countrys logistics system and connectivity.

    “These reforms will help Indonesia in achieving higher inclusive growth,” World Banks Country Director in Indonesia Rodrigo Chaves said in a statement received by ANTARA here on Thursday.

    Chaves explained the US$400 million loan will support Indonesia to overcome obstacles in the supply chain, such as dwelling time and trading permits.

    The inefficient dwelling time has resulted in Indonesias logistics costs accounting for 25 percent of the total costs, while Thailand is only 15 percent and Malaysia is 13 percent.

    Currently, the cost of container shipping of oranges from Shanghai, China to Jakarta is cheaper than the cost of similar items shipping from Jakarta to Padang, West Sumatra.

    Though, the distance between the two cities in Indonesia is only a sixth of the distance between Jakarta and Shanghai.

    “Logistics efficiency will improve connectivity and provide a significant impact on the competitiveness of the country. Improved logistics can reduce the cost of goods and services flows, especially in remote and underdeveloped regions in Indonesia,” Chaves said.

    The Development Policy Loan will support Indonesia over a transition period from the commodity-dependent economy to manufacturing-based economy with high competitiveness.

    World Banks Senior Economist Massimiliano Cali added that the high cost and unreliable logistics are obstacles in improving national competitiveness.

    “Managing these problems will increase production and export, thus lifting economic growth,” he said.

    The three main objectives of this funding is increasing the performance of the ports, improving the competitiveness of logistics services and strengthening trade facilitation.

    World Banks support for the logistics reform is an important part of the Partnership Framework of World Bank Group States, which is centered on the governments priority to bring significant changes.

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  • Program to open new rice fields in East Nusa Tenggara to continue in 2017

    Program to open new rice fields in East Nusa Tenggara to continue in 2017

    Head of the East Nusa Tenggara provincial Agriculture and Plantation Service Yohanes Tay Ruba said the province would continue the program of opening of new rice fields in 2017.

    “Currently we are conducting rationalization and preparation of the program for the opening of new rice fields to be implemented in 2017,” Yohanes said here on Saturday.

    He said implementation of the program this year could not be carried out as expected over delay in the disbursement of General Allocation Fund (DAU) from the central government.

    Until now 1,960 hectares of new rice field had been opened or falling short of the target of 2,709 hectares for this year, he said.

    Around 224.22 hectares of the new rice fields have been ready for cultivation, he added.

    “We hope the rest could be carried out with work starting early next year, that farmers could increase their rice production,” he said.

    Yohanes delay in the implementation of the program was recorded in a number of areas including in the regencies of Kupang, Sumba Timur, and Flores such as regencies of Ende and Manggarai Barat.

    The regency of Ende was to have Rp11,538,089,786 in the delayed DAU each month from September to December.

    Kupangs delayed share of the DAU in the same periods was Rp25,466,413,828; and the regency of Sumba Timur was to have Rp11,532,251,253 and the regency of Manggarai Barat was to receive a disbursement of Rp18,071,885,782 each month during the four months period.

    Yohanes said the opening of new rices fields in NTT so far had been carried out through cooperation with the military with solders sent to the fields together with the government elucidation team to encourage the farmers in expanding their rice fields.

    “We appreciate the assistance offered by the military for the farmers to increase their productivity,” he said.

    He said he hoped such cooperation would continue that when the budget fund had been available the program to open more new rice fields could be implemented as expected.

    Earlier this week President Joko Widodo said the country would not import rice in the rest of this year.

    Agriculture Minister Andi Amran Sulaiman has said there would be no scarcity in rice supply in Indonesia as the country is predicted to have a surplus of 400,000 tons in production this year.

    The minister said based on a survey by the Central Bureau of Statistics (BPS) the countrys rice production rose significantly this year.

    The survey said planting areas in July-September, 2016 reached 1 million hectares up significantly from an average of 500,000 hectares in earlier years.

    Based on an assumption that a hectare would turn out 6 tons of unhulled rice, the countrys production of unhulled rice would total 6 million tons or equivalent to 3 million tons of milled rice as against a monthly consumption of 2.6 million tons.

    Therefore, the countrys rice stock is sufficient despite the extreme weather such as foods that damaged rice crops in the country this year.

    “In addition, irrigation systems have been repaired in various areas in Indonesia in cooperation with the Public Works Ministry,” Andi said.

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  • Pelindo to build seaport for food transportation

    Pelindo to build seaport for food transportation

    The Indonesia Port Corporation, PT Pelabuhan Indonesia (Pelindo) I, will build seaport infrastructure that supports food logistics transportation in order to reduce shipping costs and improve the quality of food products, Pelindo I Director Bambang Eka Cahyana said.

    “Right now we are paying attention to the food sector. In Belawan, North Sumatra, this year we are building a cold storage,” Bambang Eka said here on last Thursday.

    Cold storage, he added, can retain the quality of food products before they are exported overseas.

    The construction of cold storage in Belawan is a short-term plan for Pelindo I.

    Meanwhile, the medium-term plan of the company is to build a specialized cluster for food processing in Tanjung Balai port, North Sumatra.

    “During this time food processing has not received full attention. If we strengthen the cluster at the port, it will lower logistics costs,” he said.

    Bambang said for the long-term project, Pelindo I will build food processing infrastructure at all seaports throughout the country that are under its management.

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  • Foreign Investors Eye Hospital Business in Indonesia

    Foreign Investors Eye Hospital Business in Indonesia

    Foreign investors have expressed interest in healthcare business investments in Indonesia. Singapore-based Global Growth Markets (GGM) consultant said that India-based hospital group Apollo Hospitals is currently considering to build a telemedicine center and a hospital in Indonesia. In addition, Malaysia-based IIH Healthcare recently announced that they would tap into the Indonesian market as a part of its expansion plan.

    GGM consultant Pet Read revealed that Indonesia’s healthcare industry showed the highest growth after China and India. The number of privately owned hospitals in Indonesia grew by 50 percent per year over the last few years.

    “Currently, the number of hospitals in Indonesia, including government-owned hospitals, is around 1,300,” Mr. Read said in a press release on Thursday, November 3, 2016.

    Other foreign companies interested in developing hospitals in Indonesia included Columbia Asia Health Services Group. The company, based in Kuala Lumpur, has planned to open three hospitals in Semarang.

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  • Leonardo ready to expand helicopter sales to Indonesia

    Leonardo ready to expand helicopter sales to Indonesia

    Italian aerospace, defense and security company Leonardo-Finmeccanica sees an opportunity to expand its presence in Indonesia with sales of its helicopter products, company officials said here on Thursday.

    Head of Region for Leonardo Helicopters Lorenzo Pariani said here at the Indo Defense Expo 2016, Thursday, that Indonesia has a dynamic market to fill the needs of civilian and military users of Leonardos products.

    “Indonesia is a big archipelago. You have specific needs that we could develop together,” Lorenzo said.

    At the end of 2015, Leonardo had delivered an AW139 helicopter to the Indonesian Search and Rescue Agency (Basarnas) for humanitarian and rescue missions.

    Basarnas was Leonardos first Indonesian costumer in the form of a government agency.

    “This is like an ice breaker because we want to sell more of our helicopters,” Lorenzo said.

    The Indonesian Air Force has also chosen Leonardos AW101 helicopter, which serves as a multi-purpose helicopter, with sufficient haulage and is projected to conduct missions as a heavy-lift helicopter to increase the mobility of troops and logistics.

    Several private operators in Indonesia have also been using Leonardos helicopter such as Susi Air with AW109 and AW119, and Travira Air, which opted for a larger AW139.

    “Were also ready to have cooperation in transfer of technology with Indonesia,” Lorenzo said.

    Leonardo has sold more than 1,000 units of helicopters globally, while this year, the company has received 15 confirmed orders for helicopters from the Indonesian costumers, he said.

    Meanwhile, Leonardos Vice President of Market and Business Development, as well as Head of Region Southeast Asia, Bruno Bertella said that Leonardo and the Indonesian Military have been partners for around 20 years.

    Leonardo has provided the Indonesian armed forces with a sophisticated defense system, such as an electronic defense systems, torpedos, warship cannons in various calibres.

    “We hope to be able to provide a heavy weight torpedo for the Indonesian submarine which was recently built in South Korea,” Bruno said.

    The Indo Defense Expo and Forum 2016 is currently being held in Jakarta from Nov 2 to 5, in which a total of 844 companies, including 573 foreign companies and 271 domestic ones, are participating.

    Indonesias Defense Minister Ryamizard Ryacudu said the exhibition is expected to benefit not only the defense field but also the countrys economy and research and technology development.

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  • Minister wants increase in exports of motorcycles

    Minister wants increase in exports of motorcycles

    The countrys motorcycle industry has recorded a leapfrogging increase in production over the past several years, but the industry is still a minor player in export, Industry Minister Airlangga Hartarto has said.

    “The countrys production of motorcycles has increased 800 percent in the past three years but exports averaged only 300,000 units year,” the minister said here on Thursday.

    Motorcycle sales in Indonesia averaged 6 million units a year that means exports are only 5 percent of the domestic sales, he said.

    Airlangga said currently the country had 90 million units of motorcycle on the street or more than one third of the population of around 250 million.

    The number shows that motorcycles have become the main alternative of public transport in the country, he said.

    Growing demand for transport service has contributed to the expansion of motor vehicle industry including motorcycle industry in the country, he said.

    In the past five years , motorcycle industry in Indonesia has grown significantly with production averaging more than 7 million units per year.

    The industry ministry said it is optimistic the rising trend would continue in the coming several years.

    Airlangga said with the increase, the countrys position as the third largest producer of motorcycle in the world after China and India would not change.

    He said motorcycle industrialists need to expand research and development to keep pace with the market requirement domestically and internationally.

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  • Sales drop for Matahari Putra Prima

    Sales drop for Matahari Putra Prima

    Supermarket group Matahari Putra Prima (MPPA) of Indonesia recorded a net profit of RP32.6 billion (US$2.5 million) despite a drop in net sales to RP10.4 trillion for the nine months ended September 30.

    As expected, says the group in announcing its interim results, a change in date of the Lebaran national holiday from the third to the second quarter as well as economic conditions in Kalimantan and Sumatra had a negative impact.

    The gross margin was 16.3 per cent and operating expenses 15.4 per cent, while same-store sales growth for the period and for the third quarter fell by 2.9 and 8.9 per cent respectively.  Without store closures for renovation, MPPA says the figures would have been 1.3 per cent up and 2.9 per cent down.

    In the third quarter, MPPA changed its accounting methods, which is says will enable it to implement a more aggressive pricing strategy, better analyse profitability and increase control over margin and inventory productivity.

    “Although the third quarter was difficult, sales started to show improvement late in the quarter,” says CEO Noel Trinder. “Actions taken earlier in the year have produced a significant reduction in merchandise inventories to a sustainable level to support future growth”

    He says 15 stores were opened during the nine months.

    “Following an adjustment of quarter-four sales to reflect current conditions, MPPA is forecasting an EBITDA of RP250 billion, bringing the year’s guidance to RP585 billion.”

    As of September 30, MPPA had 294 stores in 68 cities across Indonesia (112 Hypermarts, 25 Foodmarts, 106 Bostons, 49 FMXs and two SmartClubs).

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  • Scania Strengthens Position in Indonesia

    Scania Strengthens Position in Indonesia

    Scania continues to reinforce its position in the Indonesian bus market. Transjakarta has now placed an order for 150 low-entry city buses in addition to the previously ordered 110 3-axle Scania buses that will be delivered later this year. The public transport operator in the Indonesian capital already has 108 articulated Euro 6 Scania gas buses in its network.

    The Transjakarta Bus Rapid Transport system is considered to be the world’s longest busway, serving more than 10 million passengers monthly. The forthcoming delivery of low-entry buses will replace the existing, highly polluting, old buses that operate outside the busway corridors. The new Scania buses, delivered by United Tractors and bodybuilt by Laksana, will feature wheelchair ramps.

    On announcing the order, Jakarta Governor Basuki “Ahok” Tjahaja Purnama particularly highlighted the greater accessibility and said, “this is the world-class bus we expect to have. Jakarta has never before had low-entry buses.”

    Scania, through its Indonesian partner United Tractors, has established the bus depot workshop facilities and parts supply systems in Jakarta needed to uphold an uptime of over 90 percent.

    United Tractors is the leading and the largest distributor of heavy equipment in Indonesia, providing products from world-renowned brands, including Scania. The partnership between United Tractors and Scania was established in 2004, initially focusing on heavy-duty trucks for the Indonesian mining industry.

    Scania is major supplier of buses for BRT systems throughout the world. “We are convinced that bus systems offer the quickest and most cost-effective solution for cities to increase urban mobility and alleviate traffic congestion,” says Karin Rådström, Head of Buses and Coaches. “The Jakarta BRT system serves as a model for many growing cities.”

    Scania is a part of Volkswagen Truck & Bus GmbH and one of the world’s leading manufacturers of trucks and buses for heavy transport applications. Scania is also leading provider of industrial and marine engines. Service-related products account for a growing proportion of the company’s operations, assuring Scania customers of cost-effective transport solutions and maximum uptime. Scania also offers financial services. Employing some 44,000 people, the company operates in about 100 countries. Research and development activities are concentrated in Sweden, while production takes place in Europe and South America, with facilities for global interchange of both components and complete vehicles. In 2015, net sales totalled SEK 95 billion and net income amounted to SEK 6.8 billion.

  • Indonesia campaigns for pharmaceutical after liberalization

    Indonesia campaigns for pharmaceutical after liberalization

    The government is intensifying efforts to support the country’s longstagnant pharmaceutical industry after opening up the sector to foreign investment in its latest revision to the negative investment list (DNI).

    The efforts were evident at a dialog on “Expediting the Development of Indonesia’s Pharmaceutical Industry” organized by the Investment Coordinating Board (BKPM) on Thursday that gathered together players in the pharmaceutical industry and its related sectors.

    “Most of the existing companies make medicines, whereas the raw material businesses is small. Roughly 90 percent of raw material for the pharmaceutical industry is imported from India or China. We have to change this,” BKPM investment monitoring and implementation deputy chairman Azhar Lubis said during the event.

    In a bid to encourage the raw material industry, the government has revised the DNI, which lists the sectors restricted to foreign investment. Following the revision, the government now allows 100 percent foreign ownership in pharmaceutical companies, from 85 percent previously.

    Following the issuance of the regulation, no fresh interests on raw material sector have been expressed by foreign investors, Azhar said. However, there have been 18 new licenses for investments in the pharmaceutical industry issued by BKPM from January to September worth Rp 2.1 trillion.

    Apart from campaigning for investment in pharmaceutical factories, the BKPM will also push research and development (R&D) in the sector to encourage new innovations in new medicines that are locally made, Azhar added, citing R&D centers in Singapore and Europe.

    However, industry players said the problem with investment in the pharmaceutical sector lay in the fact that there was a relatively small number of hospitals and doctors for whom the medicines would be distributed.

    “Boosting the industry does not only mean pushing for medicine production and factories. What’s also needed is hospitals, doctors and clinics as the infrastructure to feed the pharmaceutical industry,” said International Pharmaceutical Manufacturers Group (IPMG) executive director Parulian Simanjuntak.

    Investments in the pharmaceutical sector have stagnated in recent years, reaching just Rp 8.9 trillion from January 2011 to September 2016, BKPM data shows. Also, there are only 214 pharmaceutical companies in Indonesia, most of which make medicines. Just a few of them manufacture raw material for pharmaceuticals.

    “If production [of raw material] were to start in Indonesia, it would take around three years to really get going and it would definitely cost more than importing from other countries,” said Arustiyono, the director of supervision and therapeutic product distribution at the Food and Drug Monitoring Agency (BPOM).

    “The research and development phase for the chemical reactions would itself take a year,” he added.

    The pharmaceutical industry is 70 percent dominated by local players, including privately-owned Kalbe Farma and state-owned Kimia Farma, among others.

    “The stimulus package for raw material factory investments will bring about a positive impact for the pharmaceutical industry because the source for materials will shift to local sources. This will inoculate the industry from the rupiah’s fluctuations,” Kalbe Farma corporate secretary Vidjongtius said. “In this way, medicine production costs can be more controlled. This, however, is a medium to long-term project.”

  • IT industry still ripe for growth on Indonesians’ love for gadgets

    IT industry still ripe for growth on Indonesians’ love for gadgets

    The government is intensifying efforts to support the country’s longstagnant pharmaceutical industry after opening up the sector to foreign investment in its latest revision to the negative investment list (DNI).

    The efforts were evident at a dialog on “Expediting the Development of Indonesia’s Pharmaceutical Industry” organized by the Investment Coordinating Board (BKPM) on Thursday that gathered together players in the pharmaceutical industry and its related sectors.

    “Most of the existing companies make medicines, whereas the raw material businesses is small. Roughly 90 percent of raw material for the pharmaceutical industry is imported from India or China. We have to change this,” BKPM investment monitoring and implementation deputy chairman Azhar Lubis said during the event.

    In a bid to encourage the raw material industry, the government has revised the DNI, which lists the sectors restricted to foreign investment. Following the revision, the government now allows 100 percent foreign ownership in pharmaceutical companies, from 85 percent previously.

    Following the issuance of the regulation, no fresh interests on raw material sector have been expressed by foreign investors, Azhar said. However, there have been 18 new licenses for investments in the pharmaceutical industry issued by BKPM from January to September worth Rp 2.1 trillion.

    Apart from campaigning for investment in pharmaceutical factories, the BKPM will also push research and development (R&D) in the sector to encourage new innovations in new medicines that are locally made, Azhar added, citing R&D centers in Singapore and Europe.

    However, industry players said the problem with investment in the pharmaceutical sector lay in the fact that there was a relatively small number of hospitals and doctors for whom the medicines would be distributed.

    “Boosting the industry does not only mean pushing for medicine production and factories. What’s also needed is hospitals, doctors and clinics as the infrastructure to feed the pharmaceutical industry,” said International Pharmaceutical Manufacturers Group (IPMG) executive director Parulian Simanjuntak.

    Investments in the pharmaceutical sector have stagnated in recent years, reaching just Rp 8.9 trillion from January 2011 to September 2016, BKPM data shows. Also, there are only 214 pharmaceutical companies in Indonesia, most of which make medicines. Just a few of them manufacture raw material for pharmaceuticals.

    “If production [of raw material] were to start in Indonesia, it would take around three years to really get going and it would definitely cost more than importing from other countries,” said Arustiyono, the director of supervision and therapeutic product distribution at the Food and Drug Monitoring Agency (BPOM).

    “The research and development phase for the chemical reactions would itself take a year,” he added.

    The pharmaceutical industry is 70 percent dominated by local players, including privately-owned Kalbe Farma and state-owned Kimia Farma, among others.

    “The stimulus package for raw material factory investments will bring about a positive impact for the pharmaceutical industry because the source for materials will shift to local sources. This will inoculate the industry from the rupiah’s fluctuations,” Kalbe Farma corporate secretary Vidjongtius said. “In this way, medicine production costs can be more controlled. This, however, is a medium to long-term project.”

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  • Manchester United stars to introduce Cafe Football

    Manchester United stars to introduce Cafe Football

    Former Manchester United stars Ryan Giggs and Gary Neville will open a football-themed cafe in Singapore next year as part of a business venture with real-estate firm Rowsley.

    rmp_cafe_football_0823-1280x853-

    Gary Neville (left) and Ryan Giggs team up.

    Cafe Football is the first overseas venture for the UK franchise, which also includes Hotel Football just beside Old Trafford in Manchester.

    Cafe Football and Hotel Football were initially set up by Singaporean businessman Peter Lim along with five of the Manchester United’s “Class of 92” cohort, which includes Giggs, the Neville brothers Gary and Philip, Paul Scholes and Nicky Butt. Rowsley last year acquired the majority share of both Cafe Football and Hotel Football, as well as hotel management company GG Collections.

    The company has just revealed its intention to bring the franchise to Asia, as well as Europe, over the next decade. It has identified China and India as the main markets it is targeting for expansion.

    “We’ve been approached quite a lot by partners to expand,” says Gary Neville, who played 602 games for the club. “Knowing there’s quite a lot of excitement in the market, we’re filtering down to the best opportunities that support our brand and product.

    “So far, we’ve had fantastic reviews in Manchester, with a more than 80 per cent occupancy rate even during non-match days. Now we are looking for a UK, Europe and Asian expansion over the next 12 to 18 months to add multiple properties.”

    Neville says they hope to build more than 5000 rooms over the next 10 years. They are hoping to open in Indonesia, Malaysia and Thailand, with some developments including both a hotel and cafe, while others will be a cafe only.
    There are currently two Cafe Football outlets in the UK, in Manchester and London. The cafes feature menus divided into “defence, midfield and attack”, with dishes named after football phrases such as “The Special One”, “Mexican Wave” and “El Classico”.

    Lim previously was involved in a football-themed eatery in Singapore. Fashion brand distributor FJ Benjamin, of which Lim is a shareholder, co-owned the now-defunct Devil’s Bar, a sports pub with a Manchester United theme, at Orchard Parade Hotel.

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  • Business council expects 100 thousand Russian tourists to Indonesia

    Business council expects 100 thousand Russian tourists to Indonesia

    Russia-Indonesia Business Council expects an increase in the number of Indonesian tourists to Russia and vice versa in 2016 and the coming years, in order to strengthen relations and economic cooperation between the two countries.

    A statement from the Russia-Indonesia Business Council received by ANTARA here on Thursday said that tourism was a topic of particular concern at the annual Business Forum held on October 31 in Jakarta.

    Mikhail Kuritsyn, the CEO of Russia-Indonesia Business Council, expected 100 thousand Russian tourists to visit Indonesia in the coming years, and 18 thousand Indonesian tourists to visit Russia in 2016.

    He also called for the diversification of tourism in Indonesia, so that Russian tourists would not only visit Bali Island but also other tourist destinations, which are spread across various islands in the country.

    Direct flights from Jakarta to Moscow will be the first step in enhancing the tourism cooperation.

    The national flight carrier, Garuda Indonesia, is expected to become the operator for Indonesia – Moscow flight before the second quarter of 2017.

    The Russia-Indonesia Business Forum was attended by the Russian Federation Minister of Industry and Trade, Denis Manturov; the Indonesian Minister of Maritime Affairs and Fisheries, Susi Pudjiastuti; the Indonesian Coordinating Minister for Economic Affairs, Darmin Nasution; and the Russian Federation Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary to Indonesia, Mikhail Galuzin.

    The forum was participated by 150 delegates from Indonesian companies and 100 representatives from Russian companies, including Russian Railways, United Shipbuilding Corporation, Rosneft, Rusal, Rusnano and Rostech.

    The Russia-Indonesia Business Council is a non-governmental organization which was established to bring together Russian and Indonesian businesses.

    Its main mission was to develop a mutually beneficial business relationship in order to strengthen and expand economic trade, investment and scientific cooperation between the two countries.

  • Indonesia provides free domain names for SMEs

    Indonesia provides free domain names for SMEs

    The Communications and Information Ministry is trying to propel small and medium enterprises (SMEs) into regional and global markets, by providing free domain names to help them take advantage of the country’s growing e-commerce sector.

    The government will provide the free domain names to about 8 million SMEs in all parts of the country until 2020, Communications and Information Minister Rudiantara said on Wednesday.

    In the first stage, the ministry would provide free domain names to 1 million SME customers of stateowned Bank Rakyat Indonesia (BRI) by 2018, he said. The ministry, in partnership with BRI, has also developed a digital platform for SMEs.

    “We want to speed up the [1 million free domain name] program and BRI has a lot of SME customers,” Rudiantara said on the sidelines of the signing of the memorandum of understanding (MoU) in Jakarta, adding that that it might collaborate with other companies if necessary.

    Under the current cooperation with BRI, the SMEs will be given a free domain name for a year. At present, a commercial domain name in Indonesia costs between US$10 and $20 a year.

    BRI president director Asmawi Syam said the free domain would directly involve SMEs in the e-commerce business and expand their market, while the digital platform would help transform the SMEs which are the backbone of the Indonesian economy.

    Currently, BRI has 9.5 million SME debtors in total. The program, launched in August, has managed to facilitate free domain names for 5,000 of them. As of September, BRI’s outstanding loans to SMEs stood at Rp 397 trillion ($30.4 billion).

    According to data from the Central Statistics Agency (BPS), there are more than 54.5 million SMEs in Indonesia. Accounting for around 60 percent of the country’s gross domestic product (GDP), they provide jobs for almost 99 percent of Indonesian workers.

    BRI consumer banking director Sis Apik Wijayanto explained that not all of the lender’s clients in the SME segment would participate in the program, as it was only aimed at companies with good business prospects.

    The domain names, he further said, would allow them to sell their products nationwide and even abroad.

    “If they are growing, it will be also good for BRI. When they have wider market, their turnover will increase and they will need bigger financings or loans from BRI to expand their business,” Sis said.

    The ministry’s target of 1 million domain names, he added, could be easily achieved due to the large number of BRI’s SME customers.

    The lender has been disseminating information related to the program in its 12 regional offices in 10 provinces and aiming to do so in all 34 provinces in the country. It has also provided training for its clients in Yogyakarta, and in seven cities of West Java, on how to manage a website.

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  • Garuda Indonesia Posts Strong Net Income Growth in Q3

    Garuda Indonesia Posts Strong Net Income Growth in Q3

    Indonesia’s flag carrier, Garuda Indonesia, posted net income of US$19.6 million during the third quarter of this year as an outcome of the initial implementation of the ‘Sky Beyond’ strategy, with a focus on Return Maximization as well as the continuous proportional implementation of the financial efficiency policy.

    “This positive result was achieved through non-stop hard work in implementing the ‘Sky Beyond’ business expansion strategy, which played an essential role in promoting the company’s performance the quarter,” said M. Arif Wibowo, President & CEO of Garuda Indonesia, at the media conference after the regular analyst meeting, in Garuda Indonesia’s headquarters in Jakarta.

    He added that despite the highly competitive season in the aviation industry, including the global economic deceleration which affected the national economic situation, Garuda is quite optimistic of maintaining the positive growth of the company up to the end of this year.

    Arif explained that since the beginning of year 2015, Garuda Indonesia had been constantly implementing the proportional financial efficiency program. The predicted loss in the first semester of 2016 was projected to turn around in the next quarter by improving the whole performance during the peak season.

    The continuous financial efficiency program and the performance improvement in other aspects such as operational, services and commercial, are believed to have strengthened the company to achieve positive growth until 2020.

    Arif, accompanied by the entire Board of Directors of Garuda Indonesia and the president directors of the subsidiaries, also explained that the company had succeeded in increasing total revenue from US$2.845 billion in Q3 2015 to US$2.865 billion during the same period of 2016.

    Up to the third quarter of 2016, Garuda Indonesia Group (including Citilink) carried 26,043,138 passengers, which was an increase of 6.1 percent from the 24,551,594 passengers carried in the same period in 2015.
    From the total amount, Garuda Indonesia carried 17.81 million passengers (comprising 14.55 million domestic passengers and 3.26 million international passengers). Meanwhile, its subsidiary, Citilink Indonesia, transported 8.23 million passengers between January – September 2016, which was an increase of nearly 20 percent from the 6.86 million passengers carried over the same period in 2015.

    As a result of the cargo-focused strategy that commenced in early 2016 to strengthen the company’s cargo business in addition to passenger business, mainly by a new Director of Cargo who had only been serving for less than six months (a new tenure on the Board of Directors since April 2016), the amount of cargo transported in January – September period was 295,217 tons, or an increase of 14.7 percent from the same period in 2015 of 257,304 tons.

    Garuda Indonesia and Citilink’s flight frequency in the domestic and international sectors during the January – September period rose to 204,182 flights, with an increase of 9.7 percent from the same period in 2015 with 186,052 flights. In addition, Availability Seat Kilometer/ASK increased by 13.3 percent to 43.91 billion from 38.75 billion ASK in the same period of 2015.

    Despite the challenging situation in operational aspects such as the domestic flights operations at the new Terminal 3 Soekarno-Hatta in early August, and the force majeur by unpredictable weather, Garuda Indonesia also suceeded in increasing its on time performance / OTP to 90.1 percent in the January – September period, from 88.2 percent in same period last year. The seat load factor / SLF of the period was 73.4 percent, with an aircraft utilization amount of 09:12 hours.

    In line with the continuous network expansion plan, in the third quarter of 2016, Garuda Indonesia started to serve new destinations in east Indonesia, namely Nabire, which was served directly from Biak, Papua, and Maumere, which served directly from Denpasar, Bali. The opening of these new routes was a strategic step to improve the connectivity between cities in Indonesia, as well as to strengthen its network in the domestic market.

    Concerning the highly competitive situation in the aviation industry – mainly in the Asia Pacific region – which influenced both domestic and international networks, Garuda Indonesia’s market share for domestic reached 41.2 percent, and 26.7 percent for international market share.

    “We still have time to maximize the power and potency of our strategy, particularly in facing this coming end of year peak season period. We believe that we can reach the continuous positive growth in the coming years, including our strategic plan for international network expansion in the near future,” Arif added.

    Garuda Indonesia Group operates a total of 194 aircraft, consisting of ten (10) Boeing 777-300ER, twenty-five (25) Airbus A330-200/300, two (2) Boeing 747-400, seventy-six (76) Boeing 737-800NG, eighteen (18) Bombardier CRJ1000 NextGen, and fifteen (15) ATR72-600, with a 146 aircraft operated by Garuda Indonesia, and forty (40) Airbus A320 and eight (8) Boeing 737-300/500, or 48 aircraft operated by Citilink, with an average aircraft age of 4.6 years.