Indonesia’s Joko vows to cut red tape stifling investment
JAKARTA: Indonesian President Joko Widodo pledged yesterday to slim the government during his second term and cut red tape hampering investment to achieve an ambitious growth target.
He won an April 17 election based on sample counts of votes by private pollsters, but official results are not due until May 22.
"The slimmer our organisation, the faster we can run, the more flexibly we can decide on policies," Mr Joko said, vowing to axe government agencies that do not contribute to growth.
He was speaking to regional leaders at the launch of Vision Indonesia 2045, a road map to become the world's fifth biggest economy, with gross domestic product of US$7.3 trillion (S$9.9 trillion), by the 100th anniversary of independence.
Mr Joko said he would also focus on adding infrastructure and improve human resources, in a speech that voiced frustration at Indonesia's tortuous bureaucracy.
Despite his efforts since coming to power in 2014 to ease the path to starting a business, investors still found it difficult to enter some sectors, he added.
For example, Mr Joko said, his administration had cut to 58 from 259 the permits required for power plant investments, but that was still too many and he wanted the figure cut to five.
"I'm so annoyed I couldn't solve a problem that is so obvious," he said of red tape.
Aides have said Mr Joko will pursue bolder economic reforms in his second term, which runs until 2024.
However, some analysts question whether he will be prepared to take on powerful vested interests and shake up a huge bureaucracy that often manages to blunt reform efforts.
RISK
Still, Mr Joko warned government agencies they could not stick to business as usual, at the risk of missing the 2045 target and trapping Indonesia as a middle-income country.
Achieving the target demands average annual economic growth of about 5.7 per cent, exceeding the last few years' figure of about 5 per cent.
"In the next five years, I do not have any burden," Mr Joko added. "I cannot run again. So anything that is the best for this country, I would do." - REUTERS
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