JAKARTA, October 17, 2012—Representatives of the World Bank, Asian Development Bank, Millennium Challenge Corporation and the Government of Indonesia welcomed an international delegation of companies to the World Bank Private Sector Liaison Officers (PSLO) Mission to Indonesia. The mission presents a unique opportunity for companies to learn about the business environment in Indonesia and projects financed by the International Finance Institutions (IFIs).
The World Bank Group Private Sector Liaison Officers (PSLO) Network is composed of 134 business intermediary organizations (i.e. Chambers of Commerce, business and trade associations, investment promotion agencies) in 87 countries. PSLOs work to foster trade and investment between countries through the support of products and services provided by the IFIs.
“Private sector investment is crucial to Indonesia’s economic growth. We welcome the Mission’s goal of helping to foster a competitive private sector environment to address Indonesia’s most pressing development challenges. The establishment of a World Bank PSLO in Indonesia could strengthen partnerships with the Indonesian private sector,” said Josephine Bassinette, Operations Manager at the World Bank in Jakarta.
Representatives from the National Development Planning Agency and other Project Implementation Units (PIUs) in Jakarta also attended and spoke of the importance of private sector investment in Indonesia. “This is an opportunity for private companies to visit Indonesia and to see the current economic situation of our country. This event would contribute insight to the private sector on how they run their business in Indonesia, and what opportunities are available,” Mr. Bambang Priyambodo, Economics and Financial Development, National Development Planning Agency (BAPPENAS) stated on behalf of the Deputy Chairman.
The delegation comprised of consulting firms, small and medium sized enterprises, and Fortune 500 companies from Austria, Canada, Singapore, Spain, New Zealand, the United Kingdom, and the United States. Mark Looney, President of Environmental Source Samplers, an air quality consulting firm based in North Carolina, noted, “Two days into this mission we feel that we have learned more about the market opportunities than could have been learned remotely in two years or more”.
The delegation will be in Indonesia from Oct 16-20th then will travel to Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City on Oct 21-26th to learn about business opportunities in Vietnam.
