RI Calls For Infrastructure Coop Among APEC Members

INDONESIA CALLS FOR INFRASTRUCTURE COOPERATION AMONG APEC MEMBERS Kategori: National News (NAT) 13:25 Jumat, 04 Oktober 2013 Nusa Dua, Bali, Oct 4 (Antara) - Indonesia has urged the member countries of the Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) group to work towards setting up a framework for development and investment cooperation in the field of infrastructure. "We hope that APEC leaders in the meeting will later agree on a framework that will help boost infrastructure development and investment cooperation," Indonesia`s head of the Capital Coordination Board (BKPM), Mahendra Siregar, said on Friday. He added that it was being hoped that greater investment in infrastructure would boost connectivity among the common interests of APEC countries. With regards to infrastructure development, Siregar stated that Indonesia`s public private partnership scheme till now could be used as a pilot project. "That could be an initial model to show commitment towards boosting infrastructure development and the scheme is strong and ready to be supported as a pilot project," he added. Commenting on the potential for ramping up domestic investments, Siregar said that investment was not only determined by the government, and that encouragement in terms of value addition and investment quality was also needed. During a Finance Ministerial-level meeting in Bali on September 20, the World Bank`s managing director Mulyani Indrawati, stated that global economic conditions at present were moving towards a new phase, where the economies of advanced countries were strengthening, but not at the same pace or as strongly as expected before. "The growth in developing countries is slowing, including in the Asia-Pacific countries," she pointed out. According to World Bank data, developing countries and potential markets in the APEC were predicted to soon be able to contribute almost half of the world`s economic growth. Meanwhile, global domestic income was projected to increase by around 2.4 percent in 2013 and by around 3.2 percent and by 3.5 percent in 2014 and 2015, respectively.