Bahlil: There Is Fierce Competition Between South Korea, Japan, And China To Scramble For Investment In Indonesia

Investment Minister Bahlil Lahadalia (Photo: Instagram @bahlillahadalia)

JAKARTA - Investment Minister Bahlil Lahadalia said that Indonesia is an alternative investment destination. In fact, said Bahlil, South Korea, Japan, and China are competing fiercely to be able to invest in the country.

Bahlil said that South Korea has now surpassed Japan in terms of investing in Indonesia. Bahlil said this can be seen from the position of the top 10 countries that invest in the country. Where South Korea occupies the top five positions with an investment value of USD 1.1 billion.

Meanwhile, continued Bahlil, Japan was in the sixth position. The total investment invested by Japan is USD 1 billion.

"What's more interesting is that South Korea has now surpassed Japan in the first semester. There is fierce competition between China, Korea, and Japan," he said in a webinar, Wednesday, September 29.

For your information, China itself occupies the third position with a total investment value of USD 1.7 billion. While the first position is occupied by a neighboring country, namely Singapore with an investment value of USD 4.7 billion.

He said, Europe has also looked at Indonesia as a destination country for investment. There are two European countries that invest in Indonesia, namely the Netherlands and Switzerland. Moreover, the Netherlands is the biggest contributor to investing in Indonesia.

As for its position, the Netherlands ranks fourth in the list of the top 10 countries investing in the country. Meanwhile, Switzerland is in the ninth position with an investment value of USD 0.5 billion.

"Europe is now starting to make Indonesia one of the alternative investment destinations that may be included in their priority scale. We reviewed our data through our representative office in Europe that indeed the Netherlands is now a hub when the UK leaves the Euro. The order is in 7th," he said.

On the occasion, Bahlil emphasized that Indonesia is open to all countries who want to invest in the country. He denied that if it was judged to only provide convenience for certain countries.

"We never want to distinguish which country is a priority. So it is clear that there is an assumption that we only focus on certain countries, there is none. Indonesia should not be regulated by any country. We must be a middle player for all countries to enter by law which is fairer so there is no special treatment," he said.