Report To Prabowo, Airlangga Reveals There Are Several SEZ Areas Facing Challenges

JAKARTA - Coordinating Minister for Economic Affairs Airlangga Hartarto revealed that he had reported to President Prabowo Subianto regarding several problematic Special Economic Zones (SEZs) or had challenges.

Airlangga explained that the SEZs that faced challenges were the Tanjung Kelayang SEZ in Bangka Belitung, the Morotai SEZ in North Maluku and the Arun Lhokseumawe SEZ in Aceh, namely the realization of very small investments.

"I have made reports that there are several SEZs that face challenges, such as Tanjung Kelayang, SEZ Morotai, and also SEZ in Aceh. This is due to the realization of investment which is still very limited," said Airlangga at the Indonesia SEZ Business Forum 2024 event, Monday, December 9.

In addition, Airlangga said that there are several SEZs that need improvement in terms of access, such as in Bangka Belitung, Labuan Bajo and Mandalika Lombok, which require access improvement.

"The president has given directions that the regional flight must be opened because the location is very strategic. Likewise, several other tourist targets including Labuan Bajo and the Mandalika Lombok area. So some international aircraft access to be able to enter directly so that tourism can be encouraged in several tourist areas including the SEZ," he explained.

According to Airlangga, increasing investment through SEZs has become one way to encourage economic growth in ASEAN countries.

"KEK has become the main driver of growth in China, in Vietnam, in other ASEAN countries, in Thailand. So I think it's time for SEZs in Indonesia to maximize their chances. We don't have much time, the target is 3-4 years. Therefore, we have to take advantage of geoeconomics and geostrategics," he added.

Therefore, Airlangga suggested that this could be an opportunity for Indonesia to achieve the growth target of 8 percent in the future.

For information, currently there are around 24 SEZs spread across various sectors including manufacturing, digital economy, health, and education. As for this year, investment realization has reached Rp242.5 trillion by absorbing 151 thousand workers and 394 business actors.