Pakistan and China cooperation to forge trade gateway: senator

Want China Times, Staff Reporter 2015-04-22

A tunnel under construction on the Karakoram Highway connecting Xinjiang
in China with Pakistan's Gilgit-Baltistan region, April 18. (Photo/Xinhua)

Two-way trade between China and Pakistan is expected to swell by 300% to 400% in the next five years along with the construction of the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) that connects Kashgar city in northwestern China's Xinjiang Uygur autonomous region to the southwestern Pakistan port of Gwadar via highways, railways and pipelines, Hong Kong's Ta Kung Pao reports, citing a Pakistani senator.

"The corridor will greatly benefit both Pakistan and China, as it involves deployments in comprehensive cooperation in the fields of manufacturing, energy, and transportation, etc," Saleem Mandviwalla told the paper when asked which country will benefit more from the project.

The senator also expected Gwadar Port, located at the mouth of the Persian Gulf in Pakistan's southwestern province of Baloschistan, to become the key gateway for Middle East transshipments to China in the coming few years.

President Xi Jinping of China is paying his first state visit for the year to Pakistan to oversee the signing of agreements pertaining to the implementation of the CPEC project, which may serve as a model for China in promoting its Belt and Road Initiative, the paper reported.

With the construction of the economic corridor, Mandviwalla said Pakistan will enjoy significant infrastructure improvement and transfer of manufacturing industries from China, thereby changing his country's economic structure. China's demand for clean energy to support the next decade of economic growth will be fully met by the new oil pipelines constructed under the project, he added.

China-Pakistan trade amounted to US$16.006 billion in 2014, with China enjoying a large trade surplus by recording US$13.248 billion in shipments to Pakistan. But Mandviwalla believes that once Gwadar becomes the gateway for shipments to China from Iran, Afghanistan and other neighboring countries, the trade imbalance will improve drastically.

Mandviwalla told the paper he believes Pakistan will eventually become the cornerstone of the trade gateway for Central Asia and the Middle East after the Gwadar-Xinjiang railways and highways are operational.

Garuda to Expand Papua Routes in April

Jakarta Globe, Feb 01, 2015

Garuda Indonesia plans to add three more routes to the two that it
currently operates out of Biak district in Papua. (ID Photo)

Jakarta. Flag carrier Garuda Indonesia plans to extend its network of routes in Papua, the country’s easternmost province, as part of a push to open up the region to greater development.

The airline has agreed to a request from its office in Biak district to fly three new routes as of April from Biak to Nabire, Serui and Wamena, local Garuda manager Wayan Supatrayasa told Kompas.com.

“The facilities at [Biak’s] Frans Kaisepo Airport very much allow for planes operating from Biak to serve passengers from around the Cendrawasih Bay region,” he said.

“I’m optimistic that the new routes will help improve access to isolated areas and improve those areas’ development,” he added.

Garuda currently operates just two routes from Biak: one to Jayapura, the Papua provincial capital, and another to Jakarta via Makassar in South Sulawesi.

Susi Air operates routes from Biak to other points around the region, including Serui and Manokwari.

Related Article:

Jokowi: Papua Railway Development to Start in 2015

China's railway diplomacy steams ahead in West Africa

Want China Times, Staff Reporter 2014-05-09

Chinese premier Li Keqiang, left, meets Nigerian president Goodluck
Jonathan in Abuja, May 7. (Photo/Xinhua)

After visiting Ethiopia, Chinese premier Li Keqiang traveled on to Nigeria for his second stop in Africa to ink a 80.7 billion yuan (US$12.9 billion) project by a Chinese state firm to help development the country's railway network, evidence of China's push for "railway diplomacy" to improve its diplomatic, economic and trade relations with West African countries, the Shanghai-based China Business News reports.

Li is paying official visits to Ethiopia, Nigeria, Angola and Kenya from May 4 to 11. This is the first time Li has visited the African continent since taking office last year.

Jim O'Neill, the retiring chairperson of Goldman Sachs best known for coining the term BRIC, the acronym that stands for Brazil, Russia, India and China–the four rapidly developing countries that have come to symbolize the shift in global economic power away from the developed G7 economies–has recently coined a new term, MINT, referring to Mexico, Indonesia, Nigeria and Turkey, as the next investment hot spots.

Ethiopia and Kenya, which have good relations with China, are the main target for China's aid programs in Africa, while Nigeria, now the biggest economy on the continent, and Angola, which offers abundant oil and mineral resources, are China's main energy partners, experts said.

In April, after revising the calculation method of its GDP, Nigeria exceeded South Africa as the largest economy in Africa. The most populous nation in Africa also has the continent's most complete manufacturing industry chains. Currently, the European Union is negotiating with the Economic Community Of West African States, with Nigeria at the center of negotiations.

Nigeria has not as yet made many demands for assistance from China and it chiefly needs project cooperation and investment in its industries from China, said Wang Luo, director of the Chinese Academy of International Trade and Economic Cooperation, a research and advisory arm of the Ministry of Commerce. The aim of Li's visit is chiefly to maintain good relations between China and African countries, Wang said.

Nigeria is China's second-biggest export destination, with Angola in sixth place and Kenya in 10th, while Ethiopia did not make the top 10. The top 10 African countries together account for 70.2% of China's exports to the continent.

China aims to help its labor-intensive industries diversify into Africa, expanding the "made-in-Africa" operations amid rising production costs on the Chinese mainland, the report said.

Li arrived at the international airport in the Angolan capital of Luanda to start his official visit to the country, at the invitation of Angolan president Jose Eduardo dos Santos on March 8, according to a report from Hong Kong-based Wen Wei Po.

China mulls constructing high speed railway to the US

Want China Times, Staff Reporter 2014-05-09

A test run of the Nanguang high-speed rail in Guangxi, Mar. 19. (File photo/Xinhua)

Each time Chinese premier Li Keqiang makes overseas visits, he invariably touts the good quality, technological skill, mature operations experience, high cost-performance ratio and good international reputation of China's high-speed railways.

On May 5, he reaffirmed the merits of China's high-speed railway before African leaders at the Conference Center of African Union in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia.

Behind this high-speed railway pitch is China's plan to go global with its high speed rail, which was first proposed in 2009.

The first of the three cross-border high-speed railway plans being constructed or promoted is the high-speed railway line connecting Europe and Asia, which starts from London, will pass through Paris, Berlin, Warsaw, Kiev, Moscow and then branch out to Kazakhstan, or Khabarovsk and then enter China's Manzhouli. The domestic section of this line has already started construction while the sections outside China are still being negotiated.

The second line is Central Asia's high speed railway that will start in Urumqi, pass through Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan, Turkmenistan, Iran, Turkey and conclude in Germany. The domestic section is being promoted, while the sections outside China are still being negotiated.

The third line will be the Pan-Asian high speed rail, which starts in Kunming.

China is currently digging a mountain in western Yunnan to build a 30 kilometer tunnel that will pass through Burma, and from Burma one line will go to Thailand and the other will pass through Laos, Vietnam, Malaysia before arriving in Singapore.

Wang Mengshu, a member of the Academy of Engineering and a railway expert, stated that China was also mulling building a railway to connect China, Russia, Canada and the United States.

The railway will depart from northeastern China, pass through Siberia to arrive at the Bering Strait, then on to Alaska, Canada until it reaches the United States.

Wang revealed that the line was initially estimated to be around 13, 000 km long. If completed, Chinese nationals may no longer need to travel to the United States by air, but could take a train.

Analysts were of the view that China will face three challenges in attempting to build international high speed lines in three areas, namely funds, rail operations and technological hurdles.

Bicycles demonstrate Indonesia's new spending power

BBC News, By Karishma Vaswani,  Jakarta, 20 November 2011

Indonesians can now afford to spend more money on their expensive hobbies

It's just past dawn on a Monday morning and the streets of Jakarta are still and quiet.

It is a vast contrast to what this city of 12 million is like during the day, when the roads are packed with cars and motorcycles buzz around the streets.

Only the sounds of the call to prayer, wafting through the suburbs and slums of the capital of the world's most populous Muslim nation, breaks the silence.

In Jakarta, there's no time to breathe. The stresses of work and life are felt deeply by some in the country's middle classes.

But some have found novel ways to unwind.

Adrianka, a digital imaging artist who runs his own successful business in Jakarta, is one such person.

A couple of times a week, the 27-year-old and his friends hit the back streets of Jakarta to relax - by going mountain biking.

He works in the advertising industry and is always rushing to meet deadlines. It's an expensive sport - but he thinks its worth it.

"The first I was shopping for bicycles, I thought even spending $500 was too much," he says as he takes a break from the rigorous morning bike ride. "But then I tried my friends bicycles that cost more - and they felt very comfortable."

"So I kept buying more expensive bikes - because the more they cost, the better they are. When my parents heard how much my bicycles cost they said I was crazy. But my work is very demanding - so I need this hobby to let off some steam."

Posh bikes

Foreign bicycles were rarely seen in Jakarta's shops just over a decade ago.

But now the latest models from Europe and the US are becoming increasingly common.

Most of the bicycles on these roads are relatively inexpensive - but some Indonesians willingly pay up to $5,000 for one.

Jimmy Lie started a series of upmarket stores selling branded bicycles a few years ago, because he recognised a growing trend amongst affluent and aspirational Indonesians.

They were taking to the streets on Sundays, to find some way of working out the stresses of daily life and biking was becoming fashionable.

So Mr Lie capitalised on the new expensive tastes of his consumers and is now in the midst of opening another branch in the city.

Mr Lie says Indonesians these days are far more exposed to what's going in the rest of the world, and want to have access to the same standard of goods they see their counterparts enjoy overseas.

"People nowadays, they get a lot of their information from the internet, or from watching the Tour De France," he says in between serving customers in his busy store.

Growing middle class

Just over a decade ago, it would have been unthinkable for an average Indonesian to spend a few thousand dollars on a bike.

Today though Indonesia's middle classes are far more confident about the future.

Indonesia has one of the fastest growing middle classes in the region - up from 80 million five years ago to 130 million now.

That's more than half of this country's 240 million strong population. 

Not all parts of Jakarta are experiencing a boom
in living standards

And that number is expected to grow - by 2020, many think that Indonesia's middle class will be wealthier than many in Asia.

Indonesia's economy has been one that has managed to continue to grow, despite bumps in the global economic environment.

Largely insulated from the troubles overseas because of strong domestic demand, economists say Indonesia will see growth rates stay stable or possibly even rise next year, at a time when many in the region are cutting their growth forecasts.

All this has meant Indonesian consumers are feeling far more confident about their prospects than ever before.

They consistently rank as some of the most optimistic in Asia about their economic future.

And you can see signs of that all over the streets of Jakarta these days - but especially on Sundays.

The local government has made some Sundays in a month a car-free day - an opportunity for Indonesians to get some fresh air after a busy week at their desks.

Indonesia's next generation has the ability and the desire to spend money on what it wants and not necessarily what it needs.

Not so lucky

But while the future may look bright for some Indonesians, for others not much has changed at all.

In the district of Menteng Dalam, just outside one of the poshest areas in Jakarta, life still moves at a much slower pace.

Tiny shacks are packed densely against one another, and people living in them spill out on to the streets.

The strong economic growth that is so visible just a few kilometres away has yet to touch this part of Jakarta.

Sewi, 62, has lived here for the last two decades.

He has owned his tattered, worn out and old fashioned bicycle for just as long. 

Sewi says he prefers to look after things from the past

Even if he wanted to he wouldn't be able to buy a new one - he just doesn't have that kind of money.

"I've always liked old bicycles like this," he says as he tinkers with his rusty old machine.

"I'm not tempted by newer models. The young generation - they like to change their bicycles all the time and throw the old ones away. But I like to look after things from the past. "

Sewi doesn't understand how some young Indonesians are so eager to spend their hard earned cash.

He's from a generation that still remembers the hard times here. Millions like him have yet to taste the benefits of growth.

Indonesia's future generations need to ride the waves of prosperity for this country's economic rise to be considered a true success.

Getting there quicker with GPS

Zatni Arbi , Contributor The Jakarta Post, Jakarta | Mon, 03/03/2008 12:52 AM

A friend and I were in an office building in the Pondok Indah area, South Jakarta, and we were about to leave for the airport.

I had just powered up the Global Positioning System (GPS) device I had in my hand. While the device was busy determining our location, I selected our destination from the list of Points of Interest: Cengkareng Airport (Jakarta Soekarno-Hatta International Airport).

I had to wait for quite some time before the system finally zeroed in on our exact location. Once it knew where we were and where we wanted to go, it began to blow us away.

The sleek device I was playing around with this time was Mio C320. It was designed as a car navigation system, although it can easily fit into a shirt pocket.

What makes it stand out is its text-to-speech feature, which uses a woman's voice to guide the user turn-by-turn through the confusing maze of Jakarta's roads and alleys.

The Bluebird driver who took us to the airport was amazed at how accurate the instructions were every time.

"In three hundred meters, turn left." Or, "In two hundred meters, keep right". It was truly impressive!

The screen also showed some visual clues, too. On the upper left corner it had an arrow telling us where we should go next -- left, right or straight ahead.

The name of the next street we were to turn down was displayed at the top of the screen. The system also provided some trip statistics, such as the distance traveled.

We took a back street to avoid congested Jl. Sultan Iskandar Muda, which took us through a residential area. The intelligent software inside the device didn't mind.

On the contrary, it continued to tell us to turn left or right. It conformed to the route the taxi driver was actually taking.

At one point, we didn't follow the instructions and stopped at a mini mart to get some bottled drinking water. The system forgave us for our disobedience and recalculated the route to make sure we were back on the right track to the airport.

The name "Mio" may not be as familiar to us as Panasonic or Samsung, and it definitely has nothing to do with Yamaha motorcycles. Still, Mio is the market leader in GPS devices in the Asia-Pacific region.

Garmin, which may ring a bell when talking about GPS gadgets, is still the market leader in the U.S., but Mio is the No. 3 there, says Sonia Chan, Mio's sales manager.

Frankly, I wasn't aware of the Taiwanese brand Mio before I was given the opportunity to interview Sonia Chan from Mio Technology Limited, Yo Yoe from PT Tele Atlas Indonesia and Kemal Toha from Kahar Duta Sarana right after the product launch in Indonesia.

However, when I checked the Web, I realized I had been missing a lot. Luckily, I was able to play around with a Mio C320 to really see how great the Mio GPS device is.

Mio kicked off its official arrival in Indonesia by introducing six different models, including the Mio C320 car navigation system. My review unit was priced at around Rp 5 million.

The other models included the A701 and A501, which are GPS devices with PDA and GSM phone functionality, as well as the P560 and P360 -- two GPS-cum-PDA-only models. And there was also the C230, a compact car navigation device. All these devices run Windows Mobile 6. The A701 and A501 also come with a 3.2 MP camera.

The digital mapping data is compiled by Tele Atlas, a global company based in the Netherlands.

"We use 50,000 data resources worldwide to ensure the highest level of accuracy," said Yo Yoe, Tele Atlas Indonesia's General Manager.

Kahar Duta Sarana has been appointed by the Taiwanese company as the authorized distributor of Mio products for the Indonesian market.

"We provide the logistics and user training for these products," said Kemal, the company's director.

A GPS device uses signals from a network of GPS satellites. There is no charge for using the signals beamed by the 24 satellites that were put into orbit by the U.S. Department of Defense.

A GPS device needs at least three satellite signals to be able to determine any location on earth through a method known as triangulation. The results are shown on a digital map.

What are the things that I especially like about the C320? First, the large 4.3-inch touchscreen TFT is very bright and sharp. Secondly, the speech is very clear and the system uses remarkably simple English.

I didn't have the chance to measure the life of the integrated battery, but it should be more than enough for a long trip inside the city without crawling traffic.

Mio Technologies comes with the necessary accessories to attach it to the car's windscreen. There is a car power adapter as well, so we can use it for a trip all the way to Bali. Yes, Bali, folks.

Mio has preinstalled Tele Atlas' map for Jawa and Bali, Singapore and Malaysia. If I wanted to use it in Spain, for example, I would have to purchase the maps from Tele Atlas. It should be worth every cent, as the maps are very detailed. It even has addresses of nearby cash dispensers, gas stations, hotels, galleries, restaurants, etc.

By the way, if you use the device in countries like Singapore, the C320 will even alert you if there is a speed camera ahead.

There are a few shortcomings, of course. First, the screen tends to get washed out and unreadable outdoor under the sun. You can use it inside the car with no problem.

Second, the screen keypad is a bit too small for fat fingers like mine. This is something that Mio can learn from LG Mobile; in Viewty and Prada phones, I have no problem pressing the correct characters on the phones' touchscreen although the screen keys are pretty tiny.

Another item on my wish list is a mechanical volume adjustment. As it is now, turning the voice assistance up or down requires a lot of steps, which can create a dangerous distraction to a driver.

Finally, I think the system should also allow us to make some correction in street names. I came across Duri Kepa that should have been Duri Kelapa.

Despite these minor weaknesses, it will be very difficult for me to part with the C320. It's a very useful device, especially when you need to go to a place that you are not familiar with. It's no wonder someone once said "GPS is one of the most fantastic utilities ever devised by man".

Try using one of these Mios, and you'll be trying to convince your wife that you need it.

Leaving On A Jet Plane (Don't Know When I'll be Back Again)

The Jakarta Post, Simon Pitchforth

Well Friday of last week proved to be another fun day of over-hydration in the capital. Jakarta's floods seem to be moving from a five-year cycle toward a one-year cycle, the combined result of global warming, environmental degradation and years of poor city governance.

I'm sure you all have your own fun stories to relate. Myself, I attempted a trip into the office whilst the rain was still hammering down and, despite only walking for five minutes with an umbrella, got completely soaked from head to foot, and then found out that my appointment had been canceled due to the deluge. All good fun.

I cheered up no end though when I learnt that the President was in a similar flood-induced predicament, stranded in his motorcade on the toll road, no doubt composing tracks for that difficult second album (It's Raining in My Heart, Your Love Is like a Breached Flood Barrier, Toll Road of Desire, etc. etc.).

Other Indonesian politicians seemed to fare a little better however, mainly due to being the proud owners of the latest top of the range, high ground clearance SUVs. The Jakarta Post revealed all last Saturday:

"The rest of the Cabinet's ministers arrived on time at the palace for the meeting. Among them were Transportation Minister Jusman Syafii Djamal in a Land Rover, Coordinating Minister for Political, Legal and Security Affairs Adm.(ret) Widodo AS in a Lexus Cygnus, Coordinating Minister for People's Welfare Aburizal Bakrie in a Toyota Alphard, State Minister for the Environment Rachmat Witoelar in a BMW X5 and Forestry Minister MS Ka'ban in a Toyota Prado."

I stopped reading at that point as the story seemed to be lurching perilously close to something you'd find in Top Gear magazine. I wonder if these legislative auto enthusiasts get any commission for road testing these vehicles in Jakarta's 660 km square paddling pool.

Certainly other motorists were less fortunate and familiar images of half-submerged, abandoned cars once again filled the local media. Recently I've been considering getting a secondhand motor car but the thought of being conned into buying one of these terminally flood damaged clunkers fills me with dread.

Jakarta's airport seemed to be the biggest victim of last week's rain however. My housemate's own personal attempts to return from a Singapore visa run should provide an ample illustration. His plane was first diverted to Palembang where he was trapped inside with the other passengers on the runway with the air-conditioning off for ages whilst the backlog of diverted flights was dealt with.

Upon eventually arriving at Soekarno-Hatta he found that heading into town was impossible and checked into an airport hotel on one of their six-hour room stay deals. He crashed out, exhausted, only to be woken up at 3 a.m. by an insistent knocking on the door.

"Six hours finished Mr, time to check out." My bleary-eyed friend's attempt to prolong his stay with his credit card proved unsuccessful and he was forced to take a motorcycle taxi ride to the nearest ATM in order to secure further funds for more time in the land of nod.

The next day it eventually took the poor lamb three-and-a-half hours to get home via the back streets of Tanggerang.

These kinds of shenanigans don't really bode well for 2008: Visit Indonesia Year.

I mean you're pretty much stuck on the starting blocks if you can't even get out of the airport. If I was some fastidious potential business investor or wealthy tourist arriving at Soekarno-Hatta after a long, luxury business class flight quaffing champagne on Cathay Pacific whilst being manicured and peeled grapes by curvaceous stewardesses, I think I'd find the whole Jakarta airport scenario a bit of a rude awakening.

Although Jakarta's airport seems to be getting cut off from the rest of the world with increasing regularity, in truth this flooding problem has been on the cards for years.

In the dry season, the drive to the airport is actually a very pleasant canter through lush verdant vegetation and green paddy fields but on both sides the toll road is always surrounded by ominous swathes of water, ready to submerge it at a moment's notice. The whole area is basically a swamp.

The city administration seems to have done nothing about it for years though.

That famous, and alas now deceased, galactic hitchhiker Douglas Adams once said that, "Human beings, who are almost unique in having the ability to learn from the experience of others are also remarkable for their apparent disinclination to do so," an epithet tailor-made for Jakarta's governors if you ask me.

Matters would certainly be helped if the city administration would finally get round to finishing the JORR (Jakarta Outer Ring Road) which would at least provide another exit route out of the airport. Work on the ring road was halted during the 1998 financial crisis and doesn't seem to have been started again since.

I learned in the paper this week that plans are afoot to elevate the airport tollway.

As I understand it though, the toll road, as it is now, is designed around an underlying "chicken's claw" system which distributes the road's weight evenly over a larger area of the bog underneath, stopping it from sinking.

Would it really be possible to build an elevated tollway on such an unstable base given that the current road is basically floating as it is? Perhaps any civil engineers out there could enlighten me on this point as I'm getting way out of my depth here.

Until then it's adieu from me for another week and if you find yourself wading through floodwaters over the next month, remember to wash your legs thoroughly afterwards.

http://metromad.blogspot.com/

--Simon Pitchforth

New system 'may overcome congestion'

Mustaqim Adamrah, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta

Transportation analysts have urged the city administration to focus on the development of an integrated public transportation system in 2008 to soothe Jakarta's chronic traffic woes.

The head of the City Transportation Council, Edi Toet Hendratno, said Wednesday the administration should consider integrating the already-established busway network with railway-based transportation in Jakarta.

"Trains are the most efficient and fastest carrier of people," he said.

As Jakarta already has an extensive railway network in place, the administration needs to do nothing more than connect train stations with busway stops, he said.

"We can use existing trains and railway lines that connect parts of Greater Jakarta. They're still in good shape but are under-utilized," said Edi.

"So under this new system, when a commuter takes a train they will wait no longer than 10 minutes for a busway bus to come," he said.

Edi said the council had conducted investigations into the combined system and had received a positive response from state-owned railway operator PT Kereta Api Indonesia.

"We'll submit the plan to the administration on Friday," he said, adding that the administration would make the final decision on the plan.

"The future of railway-based transportation is bright and Jakarta's traffic situation will be far better if the administration takes this seriously," he said.

After two decades of sitting idle, a circle-line train with the capacity to carry up to 400 passengers per trip was revived last month by the administration.

The air-conditioned Ciliwung train sets off from the Manggarai train station in South Jakarta, traveling through five municipalities.

The administration is also planning to launch a south-line train on Thursday that will connect Manggarai in South Jakarta to Depok in West Java.

Echoing Edi's sentiments, a member of the Transportation Study Institute (Instran) and chairman of the Jakarta Residents Forum, Azas Tigor Nainggolan, said Jakarta's traffic problems may be overcome if the administration decides to integrate the busway system and railway networks.

"We're expecting the administration to come up with a tremendous transportation solution this year and it would be good if it combined the busway and train networks," he said.

"The administration would only have to spend a minimal amount of money to develop the integrated transportation system because railway networks already exist in the city and it could use busway's seven existing corridors."

However, Azaz said the administration should investigate the performance and financial reports of the busway operator, dismantle the company's "corrupt" management and replace its "officials with professionals" before going ahead with the plan.

Administration forced to tighten purse strings

The Jakarta Post, Jakarta

Due to the regional income being lower than expected this year, the city administration is preparing to be more thrifty in its spending in 2008.

"The proposed budget for next year is lower than the 2007 budget by Rp 679 billion ... However, I am optimistic we can boost the regional income next year," Governor Fauzi Bowo said Tuesday after submitting the proposed budget to the City Council.

The proposed budget for 2008 is Rp 20 trillion (approximately US$2.12 billion), or 3.28 percent lower than the 2007 budget, which was Rp 20.68 trillion.

In 2006, the city budget was Rp 17.99 trillion and in 2005 it was Rp 13.48 trillion.

Fauzi said the budget was expected to decrease in value next year due to the fact the city fell short of its projected income of Rp 18.65 trillion in 2007. He said at the end of the third quarter, the city administration's income for the year stood at only Rp 11.3 trillion, or 60.59 percent of the projected total.

Fauzi said the administration would take steps to increase its income next year and would reduce unnecessary expenditure as well as expand the role of the public and private sectors in budgeting and development.

He said to save money during the past few months, the administration had procured goods and services over the internet, which resulted in budgetary savings amounting to almost 15 percent.

"For example, if a project was worth Rp 1 billion, we could save up to Rp 150 million with online procurement," he said.

Fauzi said discussions regarding the budget were expected to be finalized by Jan. 15, after which the budget would be submitted to the Home Ministry for approval. He said it was likely the budget would be disbursed in February.

"We submitted the proposed budget late this year due to the gubernatorial election," he said.

City Council speaker Ade Surapriatna said the council realized the importance of speeding up discussions regarding the budget.

"We can schedule discussions for any time ... as it is important we finish the process quickly," Ade said.

Aside from revealing the administration's income plans for next year, the proposed budget also details several programs to be carried out, totaling some Rp 3.25 trillion.

The administration submitted 2007's proposed budget in November 2006. However, the budget was only finalized in April 2007, causing delays in salary payments for city employees and contractors. (tif)

The administration's proposed programs for 2008

• flood control: Rp 691 billion
• for East Flood Canal land acquirement Rp 400 billion
• for river clearances Rp 215 billion
• for dam clearances Rp 76 billion
• Improvements on busway corridor I - X Rp 142 billion
• preliminary development of MRT Rp 108 billion
• first phase of Pulogebang bus terminal construction Rp 25 billion
• development of roads/bridges to support West and East Primary Center: Rp 41 billion
• construction of low-cost apartments: Rp 257 billion
• school operational costs (elementary - high schools) Rp 1 trillion
• health services for the poor/disaster-affected families Rp 200 billion
• construction of two public health centers Rp 43 billion
  
• disease control Rp 10 billion and public health insurance Rp 2 billion
• improvement of transparency and accountability: Rp 5 billion (including for e-procurement and internet-based business permits)
• development of Old City tourism: Rp 18 billion
• air pollution and green space control: Rp 110 billion

Govt to let private business engage in railways

Jakarta (ANTARA News) - The government will let private enterprise enter the railway business through a railway revitalization program to be implemented in 2008-2010, Transportation Minister Jusman Syafii Damal said.

Private business will have an opportunity to invest in and manage railway utilities and infrastructure, Jusman told the press after a meeting on railway revitalization at the vice-presidential office here Wednesday.

A government regulation giving the private sector a role in the operation and management of railways will be issued in March 2008, he said.

"Letting the private sector enter the railway business is in principle intended to create a climate of healthy competition in the field so that there will also be an improvement in the quality of railway services," the minister said.

He said the private sector would at least have a share in the operation and management of special train services to transport strategic commodities such as coal or oil-palm kernel, or also of airport train services.

About the railway revitalization program, Jusman said it was estimated to cost about Rp19.3 trillion and cover railway operations in the Jabodetabek (Jakarta-Bogor-Depok-Tangerang-Bekasi) region, Java, and a few provinces in Sumatra such as North Sumatra, West Sumatra, and the southern part of Sumatra.

In parts of Sumatra, the revitalization would include rehabilitation of bridges, roads, and other infrastructure facilities including the building of a tunnel through the Bukit Barisan mountain range at Indarung.

In Java revitalization efforts would be focused on increasing the capacity of services to keep up with the constant growth in the number of train passengers and of container and other goods transportation.

"It is estimated that by 2010 the number of people moving within the Jabodetabek region daily will reach 22 million. It has been decided that a separate company needs to be set up to serve the needs of that number of commuters in a better way," Jusman said.

The revitalization program would be implemented by a national team to be overseen by the Coordinating Minister for Economic Affairs.

Vice President Jusuf Kalla at the meeting asked the management of state-owned railway company PT KA to concentrate on efforts to improve its image. "The safety of railway travel must be improved and train passengers` comfort guaranteed," Kalla said.

The meeting at the vice president`s office was also attended by Coordinating Minister for Economic Affairs Boediono, State Enterprises Minister Sofyan Jalil, National Development Planning Minister Paskah Suzetta and Industry Minister Fahmi Idris.

Govt to restore aging railway facilities

Ridwan Max Sijabat, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta

The government is set to prioritize the rehabilitation and maintenance of old railway facilities and infrastructure in order to improve railway traffic safety and services, the Minister of Transport said.

Minister Jusman Syafii Djamal also said 465 kilometers of some 3,200 kilometers of railway track on Java, along with more than 780 kilometers of 1,340 kilometers of railway track on Sumatra were already 70 years old.

He said the age factor was contributing to the increasing number of railway accidents on the two islands in the past few years.

"The construction of more than 200 km of double track connecting Yogyakarta with Solo, Kutoarjo and Cirebon has been completed, while the one connecting Cirebon and Kroya is underway," Jusman said in his opening address at the Asia-Pacific railway workers' conference here Monday.

"The rehabilitation program will be conducted in phases due to the limited state budget."

A representative for the International Transport Workers' Federation (ITF), Hanafi Rustandi, called on the government to speed up rehabilitation work to minimize train accidents in the future.

He said of 20 train accidents that happened in the first semester this year, 30 percent were caused by the poor condition of trains and railway networks.

Another 20 percent had something to do with the poor condition of supporting facilities.

Hanafi said however he acknowledged the issuance of a government regulation on pension adjustments for railway employees following a long negotiation between employees and the management of state-owned railway operator PT Kereta Api (PT KA).

ITF Secretary for the Asia-Pacific region Sigeru Wada said the rapid rehabilitation of poor railway facilities was needed to restore public confidence in PT KA's service and the government.

"The railway service should be developed as an alternative for an efficient and safe transportation mode, particularly on Java," Wada said.

He said strong coordination between the government and local authorities in Greater Jakarta to seek a better solution to problems of traffic congestion in the region was needed.

He said the current transportation mode should be strengthened by improving services of commuter trains and monorails that transported travelers to and from certain transportation centers.

Jusman called on businesspeople to invest in the planned construction of cargo trains in resource-rich Sumatra and Kalimantan to serve the mining sector on the two big islands as mandated by Law No. 23/2007 on railway transportation.

"The government is inviting the private sector to participate in the planned construction of railway transportation connecting Tanjung Enim with Tarahan, Kertapati and Tanjung Api-api in South Sumatra and that linking Samarinda with Balikpapan, Bontang, Banjarmasin, Palangka Raya, Tenggarong and Kota Bangun in Kalimantan," he said.

"The government also plans to construct a railway transportation connecting Pontianak with Singkawang, Sambas and Kucing in East Malaysia."

Jusman also said several local investors had shown interest in investing in the cargo train development project.

New roads will ease traffic woes, Fauzi says

The Jakarta Post, Jakarta

In an effort to reduce traffic congestion in the capital, the city administration, through its company PT Jakarta Propertindo, plans to focus on two toll road projects in the near future.

"The projects will help ease traffic congestion. Therefore, I want Jakarta Propertindo (Jakpro) to prioritize the projects so we can tell the public in the next few years there will be new toll roads," Governor Fauzi Bowo said Monday.

He said once a new 12-kilometer harbor toll road was completed, traffic to the harbor would be channeled straight from Cakung to the new elevated toll road, reducing traffic congestion.

Fauzi said Jakpro would also work on a section of the city's outer ring road called West Two, which will connect Kapuk in North Jakarta with South Jakarta via the Bintaro-Fatmawati toll road.

He said that aside from West Two, the outer ring road would have another section added called West One, which would pass through Meruya in West Jakarta.

"When these two sections are completed, traffic from the western part of Jakarta won't have to pass through the Jakarta inner toll road. If people want to go to Tanjung Priok harbor in North Jakarta, they will be able to take West One. If they want to go to Bekasi, they will be able to take West Two to Pondok Indah - Jati Asih - Bekasi," he said.

Fauzi did not reveal when the construction of the new projects would start as the administration and Jakpro were still discussing financing details.

"The harbor toll road project will require Rp 350 billion (approximately US$37,77 million) for land acquisition purposes, but we only have access to Rp 150 billion at this stage. The West Two project will cost around Rp 250 billion. We are still negotiating this issue," he said.

Jakpro president director IGK Suena said his company would discuss the capital structure for the West Two project with its partner, PT Jasa Marga.

"We will be able to acquire some of the land," Suena said, adding that acquired land would become Jakpro's equity in the joint company.

He said that under the open toll road system, the company expected to break even in seven to eight years.

Fauzi said the administration decided to become involved in the projects because it wanted to take part in their management.

"If there are any problems, we will be able to fix them. If there are any profits, we will be able to enjoy them," he said. (tif)

Korean investors eye railway projects

The Jakarta Post, Jakarta

Nearly 40 South Korean businessmen representing the country's major companies are visiting Indonesia to take a closer look at a number of infrastructure projects offered by the government.

The Korean contingent in the republic is part of the two countries' economic partnership agreement.

The business executives together with senior officials from Indonesia's ministry of construction and transportation, and the ministry of planning and budget met their Indonesian counterparts here Monday to discuss the projects, which include the development of railways, toll road and sea ports.

"Many Korean companies expressed their interests in railway development projects in the country during the meeting," the deputy minister for infrastructure and regional development at the office of the Coordinating Minister for the Economy Bambang Susantono said.

"They will discuss their proposals with related ministry officials."

The Korea Development Institute's (KDI) managing director Kim Jay-Hyung said the Korean companies and the Indonesian government were currently discussing projects including those on railway and seaport construction, but he refused to elaborate further.

"Infrastructure development is an essential element for economic growth," Kim said.

"Limited public budget, however, won't be able to fulfill the demand.

"Therefore, encouraging private sector capital investments in infrastructure facilities is an alternative method to fulfill the demand."

The Korea-Indonesia partnership program was initiated in December 2006 to foster a mutual economic relationship between the two countries.

In October this year, both governments signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) aimed at sharing knowledge and experiences, attracting Korean companies to invest in Indonesia, and building productive partnerships.

The deputy chief for infrastructure at the National Development Planning Agency, Dedy S. Priatna, said the country's infrastructure development required a total investment of US$65 billion for the 2005-2009 period, while the government was only able to provide S$25 billion.

To fill the gap, participation of the private sector was essential.

However, Dedy added, inviting foreign parties to take part in the development of the projects faced some major problems, including those related to land acquisition, laws and regulations that needed to be adjusted to facilitate partnership program, a lack of domestic capital market to finance partnership projects and the poor quality of project preparations.

He said those issues needed to be fixed to accelerate the country's slow pace of infrastructure development.

The government was currently finalizing a scheme to determine the maximum cost of land acquisitions in major infrastructure projects, an issue noted as one of the major causes of project delays. (adt)

Development of Jakarta airport railway to start in March 2008

Jakarta (ANTARA News) - Transportation Minister Jusman Syafii Djamal said the development of a 27-km-long airport railway in Jakarta will start in March 2008.

"The project`s ground breaking will be carried out in March 2008 and it is expected to be completed in June 2009," the minister told the press after the launching of Ciliwung Blue Line at Gambir railway station here on Friday.

The airport railway was an urgent need and could become the best alternative to go to and come from the airport for Jakarta residents, apart from toll roads, he said.

"The threat of flooding induced by high tide as happened last week and caused traffic congestion on the road to the airport, will no longer recur if we have an airport railway. Besides, its carrying capacity will be much bigger than buses," the minister said.

The bidding process for the railway construction would be completed before March 2008, he said.

"Work to make the DED (Detailed Engineering Design) is expected to be finished in December, and it will be followed by the bidding and other processes," he said.

Meanwhile, the elevated railway project will be operated by PT Railink, a subsidiary of state railway company PT KA, with a share ownership of 60 percent by PT KA and the rest by PT Angkasa Pura II airport management company, President Director of PT KA Ronny Wahyudi said.

The funds of the airport railway project, which was estimated to cost around Rp2.2 trillion, would be provided by three national bank syndicates, he said.

The route of the airport train line would be : Manggarai (Duri)-Angke-Soekarno Hatta airport, he said.

Commuter train service being put on fast track

The Jakarta Post, Jakarta

Long neglected, the government seems to have realized that trains could be the only affordable mass rapid transportation system that really works in the capital.

In the past year, the government has made efforts to improve services, including the construction of double tracks, expansion of routes and the addition of air-conditioned cars, in a bid to lure residents to leave their cars at home.

But old habits are hard to break.

Although railway officers have begun cracking down on free riders who sit on the tops of cars or hang on between train cars, people are still willing to risk their lives for a free ride home while avoiding the traffic.

Elevated roads shot down by experts

Mustaqim Adamrah, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta

Critics said "more roads means more traffic" about Governor Fauzi Bowo's plan to expand driving space vertically, with elevated roadways stacked one above the other.

Experts say difficulty in purchasing land for new roads is behind the plan.

Andi Rahmah of the Indonesian Transportation Society said Monday the build-more-roads paradigm was obsolete.

"Five years ago, benefits from a new road would last a year. But with current traffic and the number of cars now, we enjoy the benefit of a new road for only a few weeks at the most."

"Expanding roads is not the answer by any means. It's only a temporary remedy for traffic problems."

For example, the Cikunir turnpike, which is part of the Jakarta Outer Ring Road, a toll road, was just as congested as other turnpikes one week after it commenced operation in late August, Andi said.

"Only investors and contractors will benefit from expanding road projects, while the people will suffer."

"The city administration must focus on developing the mass transportation system and limiting the use and ownership of private vehicles to overcome traffic congestion."

Jakarta has nearly 5.5 million cars, motorcycles, buses and trucks. On average, 269 private vehicles and 1235 motorcycles are purchased daily.

Jakarta roads, estimated to total 40 square kilometers, expand by less than 1 percent annually and can only accommodate 0.01 percent of all cars, according to City Public Works Agency head Wisnu Subagyo Yusuf.

According to Budi Kuntjoro, a project director at the Institute for Transportation Development and Policy, mass transportation is the key to solving traffic problems in big cities like Jakarta.

"There will never be enough roads to accommodate all the cars, even if they are continuously expanded."

Fauzi said he planned to build underground roads and stacked, elevated roads like those in Tokyo, Japan, that reach up to five levels.

He said such roads, would help ease traffic congestion all over the capital as they did in Tokyo, apart from overpasses and underpasses he planned to build next year.

The elevated roads to be built would be linked to the existing inner city toll road and connect West, Central and East Jakarta, said Fauzi.

The elevated road project will cost an estimated Rp 21 trillion (US$2.25 billion), according to Fauzi.

However, he is yet to reveal the timeline for the project.

A transportation expert at the University of Indonesia, Bambang Susantono, said that -- without doubt -- just building more roads was not a sustainable solution to chronic congestion in the capital.

On the other hand, he said, sustainability was possible if new roads were part of a complete transportation scheme, feeding into bus lines, subways, and other systems.

He said it was important for the governor to determine the location of exits on the planned roads, as new roads to the center of Jakarta might do more harm than good.