Expo Indonesia to improve ties with India

Sairaj Iyer

The news of an embassy organizing an expo is usually a good time for diplomatic issues to be ironed out between the host and the guest country. The Consul General of Indonesia, Saut Siringoringo was  excited that this expo would help facilitate better awareness and foster a sense of collaboration between South Asia’s two heavily populated countries. The India-Indonesia story could have been a strategic advantage but has failed to sizzle for various reasons. 

Indonesia, the third most populous countries in recent times has observed slowdown, inflation, and foreign outflow largely triggered due to Chinese slowdown. The impact has led to the currency crashing from nearly 7500 rupiahs in 2012 to nearly 15,000 during early 2016 for every dollar. The country seems vulnerable to outflows, but, Siringoringo believes these to be perception related issues, and can be resolved by understanding culture and organizing conferences to examine the growth avenues. According to him, the Indo-Indonesian trade could be one area that would bring great opportunities. 

The two south-east Asian countries in recent years have not been able to capitalize on the many overlapping cultural identities, although bilateral trade between the two has touched the $16 bn mark. On the business front, India largely exports petroleum products, telecommunication equipments and parts, hydrocarbons & derivatives, oil seed, motor vehicle for goods transportation while Indonesia exports fixed vegetable fats & oils, coal, copper ores, natural rubber, pulp & waste paper, alcohol & phenol, hydrocarbon, machine tools, medicinal and pharmaceutical products, dyeing/tanning extracts, and a handful chemical products. The Consul General pointed out that the Potential Areas of Synergy could be machine tools, forging, foundry and dies, electric motors and switches, pumps and compressors, transmission towers, cement, sugar and fertilizer plants, power generating machinery, computer software and wood. 

The tourism sector is one among the glaring examples of a loss of momentum. Surprisingly there are no direct flights from Indonesia to India, though the Indian footfalls in Indonesia touched nearly 271,252 in 2015, and tourism is one of the country’s top revenue contributors to their GDP of 4%.  Speaking about the expo, Siringoringo said “We are organizing the Expo Indonesia which will aim at improving bilateral ties and offer Indian entrepreneurs a peek of the Indonesian market. Last year, I was a part of a consortium with nearly 130 Indian investors. The Indian team was the largest, and there was a direct investment of nearly $84 mn during the show. There has been a huge interest about investing in Indonesia but people also have a perception issue, and the best way of resolving such issues is through a cultural and expo show.” 

Over 50 companies are participating and displaying their products and services. The categories largely involve home interiors & decor goods, fashion products, garments / batik, handbags, food & beverages, traditional handicrafts, wood & rattan furniture, health, beauty & spa, jewellery, tourism and their related services from Indonesia. 

When asked about the success rating of such expo shows by the Dollar Business correspondent, the Consul General replied candidly,that such programs leave a spell-binding impression. “We (Indo-Indonesian) started off well during the Nehruvian era, but have since then failed to capitalize on our similarities and trade. The expo Indonesia will involve sessions around business and hence clear many of the perception related issues.”