Jakarta, 5 September 2023 – Chair of the ASEAN Business Advisory Council (ASEAN-BAC) Arsjad Rasjid opened the Borneo Business Roundtable at the Sultan Hotel in Jakarta on Monday (5 September 2023). The meeting aimed to bring together stakeholders in Borneo to promote intra-Borneo trade and attract foreign direct investment (FDI).
In his opening remarks, Arsjad said that the meeting would discuss various important matters, including the Nusantara Capital City (IKN), the formalization of the Borneo Economic Community (BEC), and the launching of registrations of interest in the Dagang Borneo Digital Marketplace.
“Today, we will delve into crucial tropics. We will gain insight into the Nusantara, which will be inaugurated in 2024. We want the national capital to be a blessing for us and our neighboring countries and business partners,” he said on Monday (5 September 2023) in Jakarta.
Arsjad explained that IKN will be the future capital of Indonesia. The new city will be inaugurated on 17 August 2024, coinciding with Indonesia's 79th anniversary of independence day. IKN is designed to be an inclusive, green, and sustainable city.
“Borneo is the largest island in Asia and the third largest in the world. With a population of around 24 million people, there is significant potential to boost trade in the cities across the three countries that inhabit the island, namely in Brunei, Kalimantan, Labuan, Sabah, and Sarawak,” Arsjad said.
He also mentioned that the formalization of the community in Borneo will be central to ensuring that the priorities and legacy projects of ASEAN continue to be pursued, ranging from digital transformation to sustainable development, trade, investment, and so on.
The Borneo Business Roundtable is not solely motivated by economic goals. Its primary objective is to encourage Borneo to rapidly become a major component in improving the livelihood of its people.
“As leaders, CEOs, and stakeholders, we have a responsibility to create an environment that fosters inclusive growth for all, and to collaborate beyond national boundaries,” Arsjad said.
The Borneo Business Roundtable reached an agreement called the Borneo Economic Community. “The purpose of this agreement is to identify the strength present in Borneo. This is a collaboration within one of the largest islands in the world,” Asrjad said, adding that the meeting also agreed that one of the epicenters of growth is in Borneo, namely in the Nusantara Capital City.
Meanwhile, the Governor of North Kalimantan Zainal A. Paliwang, representing the governors who lead the administrations on the island of Borneo, expressed his appreciation for the breakthrough made by the Indonesian Chamber of Commerce and Industry (Kadin Indonesia) in initiating the Borneo Business Roundtable.
This activity has many benefits, especially for the communities on the island of Borneo. “Hopefully, this activity can bring prosperity and progress, especially in the region of Borneo Island, including in Brunei and Malaysia,” Zainal said.
Deputy for Investment and Funding of IKN Authority (OIKN) Agung Wicaksono said that there are three crucial aspects of the Borneo Business Roundtable. Firstly, this is the first time in world history that a capital city is being moved to another island. Previous relocations involved moving the capital to a different location but still on the same landmass. “The fact that Indonesia’s capital is moving to Borneo is truly historical,” said Agung.
Secondly, according to Agung, Borneo serves as the lungs of the world, helping to regulate the climate. Therefore, the concept of the Nusantara Capital City is a smart and sustainable forest city.
“Thirdly, OIKN would like to express its gratitude to the ASEAN-BAC because our brothers and sisters of Borneo in Malaysia and Brunei, God willing, are starting to invest in IKN. Companies from Malaysia have expressed their interest, and some have already conducted feasibility studies for building residencies. This means that IKN is indeed a global city, a city for all,” he said. (WW)
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Photo caption: The ASEAN Business Advisory Council (ASEAN-BAC) holds the Borneo Business Roundtable at the Sultan Hotel, Jakarta, on Monday (5 September 2023). (Amiri Yandi/InfoPublik).