JAKARTA: Newly-established development financier the US International Development Finance Corporation (DFC) is eyeing investments in Indonesia worth US$5 bil (RM20.38 bil), according to a statement by the country’s cabinet secretary.
President Joko Widodo has been trying to attract investment to boost economic growth that has hovered around 5% in recent years, below the campaign promise of 7% that he made for his first term in office.
DFC CEO Adam Boehler said today he would discuss the deals in the next two months.
Widodo, who was re-elected for a second five-year term last year, called the investment “significant” in the statement, reiterating his commitment to build new infrastructure projects in his second term.
Boehler and Indonesia’s coordinating minister for maritime affairs and investment, Luhut Pandjaitan, told reporters they had discussed possible deals by the DFC in the energy and infrastructure sectors, such as roads.
Boehler did not elaborate on the agency’s plans for Indonesia but said the agency would shortlist certain projects over the next couple of months where the investment would “lead into tens of billions.”
The DFC, launched last month with a budget of US$60 bil, is seen by analysts as an attempt by the US government to provide an alternative to Beijing’s sweeping Belt and Road initiative (BRI). – Jan 10, 2020 Reuters
