Korean, Indonesian delegations review joint-project progress

The Jakarta Post, Jakarta

Indonesian and South Korean delegations ended a two-day meeting Tuesday aimed at reviewing the progress of joint projects in various sectors agreed as part of an economic cooperation pact signed by their presidents in Seoul late last year.

Korean Ambassador to Indonesia Lee Sun-jin said the meeting was intended to find solutions to any problems that could potentially hamper the implementation of the pact, which was signed in December last year by President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono and his Korean counterpart, President Roh Moo-hyun.

The eight sectors are policy support; trade, investment and technology; energy resources; infrastructure and construction; information technology; defense; forestry and marine industries; and research and development.

Among the projects are the construction of a railway and a port for coal in East Kalimantan; a joint investment in infusion production; a joint study on oil and gas exploration; a cooperation agreement for the development of a coal mine; and a coal liquefaction project.

The Korean delegation was headed by Kim Jung-gwan, the director general of the Korean Commerce, Industry and Energy Ministry, and the Indonesian delegation by Mahendra Siregar, a deputy at the Office of the Coordinating Minister for the Economy.

"During the meeting, the Korean companies that are involved in the projects had the opportunity to talk to relevant (Indonesian) government officials about the projects," Mahendra said.

Lee said the representatives of the two countries reviewed the progress of the ongoing projects at the meeting, with the results due to be reported to the respective presidents.

The business relationship between the countries had grown dramatically this year, he added.

In July, President Yudhoyono visited Korea for the signing of a number of agreements on energy and infrastructure projects, and in August, the Indonesian Investment Coordinating Board (BKPM) held an investment promotion in Seoul.

Earlier this month, a public-private partnership discussion between the two countries and a Korean trade promotion expo were held here.

As of the end of the first semester, South Korea's total investments in Indonesia stood at US$12.6 billion. Indonesia is Korea's ninth largest trading partner worldwide, while Korea is Indonesia's fifth largest worldwide. (adt)