INDONESIA'S AGRICULTURE HAS BETTER PROSPECTS IN 2017

By Andi Abdussalam

Jakarta, Dec 17 (Antara) - The El Nino weather phenomenon that struck Indonesia in 2015, bringing droughts and wide-spread forest and land fires, caused a reduction in the country's agriculture production.          Yet, the other weather phenomenon, the La Nina, took its turn in 2016 by bringing fortunes, as Indonesian agricultural production increased again, compared to 2015. This upward trend in agricultural products is expected to continue, and increase further, in 2017.          "In 2017, the agricultural subsystem and agribusiness will be better than in 2016, regardless of questions on who will be enjoying the benefits," said Bungaran Saragih, a former minister of agriculture during the administration of former president Megawati Soekarnoputri, speaking during a seminar on the outlook for agribusiness in 2017 in Jakarta on Thursday.         Over the past several months, there have been signs of a global economic revival.         According to many experts, who are also supported by Bungaran, world economic growth will increase again in 2017, though the rise has yet to reach its peak. In 2017, the world economy is expected to begin escaping the worsening economic conditions.

INDONESIA NEEDS TO BRACE FOR GLOBAL CHALLENGES

By Andi Abdussalam

Jakarta, Dec 15 (Antara) - Indonesia is expected to have a relatively improved economic performance in 2017, while still needing to prepare itself in the face of global and domestic challenges.          Global economic uncertainties will continue to be felt next year and affect the Indonesian economy. The Indonesian Institute of Sciences (LIPI) has predicted that global challenges and internal conditions could affect Indonesia's national economic performance in 2017.          The global economic dynamism in 2017 could have an impact on Indonesian economic conditions. There will be uncertainties in Europe after the Brexit, and uncertainties in the direction of United States polices after the election of Donald Trump as US president.          Trump's protectionist policies, if implemented, would have a negative impact on market confidence, not only among business people and investors in the United States, but throughout the world.

RI CONCERNED OVER ISIS PLAN FOR BASE IN SOUTHEAST ASIA

By Andi Abdussalam

Jakarta, Dec 14 (Antara) - Indonesian lawmakers, intelligence analysts and government have expressed concern over the alleged plan of ISIS to develop a base in Southeast Asia by creating a new caliphate in the Philippines, Indonesia, Malaysia and Brunei Darussalam.          The bomb blasts that killed eight people, including two terrorists, at Sarinah, Jalan Thamrin, Central Jakarta, last January, are linked to the ISIS movement. The latest ISIS-linked incident is the arrests on Saturday and Sunday of suspected terrorists who planned to detonate explosives at the State Palace.          The incidents are indications of the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria's (ISIS') plan to build a base and create a caliphate in the region, according to Lawmaker Bambang Soesatyo.         Even Indonesian security authorities and the people should be alert about the infiltration by ISIS of mass organizations in the country, according to legislator Charles Honoris.         "I would not name the organization, but they have openly expressed support for the ISIS," Charles Honoris, a member of the Commission I of the House of Representatives (DPR) said here Friday.

INDONESIAN GOVERNMENT TO REFORM ITS COOPERATIVES

By Andi Abdussalam

          Jakarta, Dec 9 (Antara) - Cooperatives are not yet able to benefit people in an equitable manner, prompting the government to consider bringing in reforms and empowering them so that members benefit and the poverty rate comes down.
        Indonesia's Minister of Cooperatives and Small and Medium Scale Enterprises, Anak Agung Gede Ngurah (AAGN) Puspayoga, has announced plans to totally reform the cooperatives to ensure equitable economic benefits and cut down unemployment and poverty rates.
        The move will have a positive impact on the regional and national economic growth.
        The cooperatives reform program will be carried out through rehabilitation and database update. The government is also drafting a new cooperatives law which will serve as an effective legal basis for the development of cooperatives in the future.
        The draft law of cooperatives will replace Law No. 17 of 2012 which was scrapped by the Constitutional Court.    
   Law No. 17/ 2012 was issued to replace Law No.25 of 1992 which was seen as incapable of accommodating the interests of developing cooperatives.
         Deputy for Institutional Development of the Ministry of Cooperatives, Meliadi Sembiring, added that the draft law on cooperatives will accommodate all inputs from various quarters, including cooperatives stakeholders.

GOVT SETS GRADUAL INCREASES TO ATTRACT 20 MILLION TOURISTS

By Andi Abdussalam

Jakarta, Dec 9 (Antara) - President Joko Widodo's (Jokowi's) administration has set a target of attracting 20 million foreign tourist arrivals in the country by 2019, that is, by the end of his term in office.          To meet this target, since the beginning of his administration in October 2014, he has established policies that led to a progressive increase in foreign tourist arrivals while continuing to promote the country's tourism attractions both at home and abroad.          The government aggressively develops the country's tourism by promoting different activities such as Sail Indonesia, sports tourism, and cultural events, and by developing 10 major tourist destinations in addition to the already popular tourist resorts such as Bali and the Buddhist Temple of Borobudur in Java.          Based on the success of its efforts to intensively develop Indonesia's tourism potential, the government is convinced it will achieve its target of 20 million foreign tourist arrivals in 2019.          Starting its tourism program in 2015, Jokowi's government set a tourist arrival target of 10 million in 2015, up from the 9.4 million arrivals of foreign tourists recorded in 2014.

ASSISTANCE FLOWING TO QUAKE-HIT ACEH

By Andi Abdussalam

Jakarta, Dec 7 (Antara) - Aid is flowing into Aceh Province, particularly Pidie Jaya District, which was hit by a 6.5-magnitude earthquake on Wednesday that killed 92 people and injured more than 200.          The key agencies involved in relief work are the Ministry of Social Affairs, the PMI Bogor Hospital, the Air Force, the House of Representatives and the National Search and Rescue Agency (Bazarnas).          President Joko Widodo (Jokowi) will also visit the quake-rocked region of Pidie Jaya but his schedule will be determined later as he does not want his visit to impede relief and evacuation work; the priority is to allow rescue workers to carry out their jobs.          According to the chief of the Iskandar Muda Military Command, Major General Tatang Suherman, who quoted sources from military and police personnel in the field, at least 92 people have lost their lives and 213 have been injured.          The earthquake, which destroyed several houses and places of worship, occurred at 5:03 am local time on Wednesday, with its epicenter at 5.19 degrees northern latitude and 96.36 degrees eastern longitude, at a depth of 10 kilometers, some 18 km northeast of Pidie Jaya.

RI'S ECONOMY STRONG IN FACE OF UNCERTAINTIES IN 2017

By Andi Abdussalam

Jakarta, Dec 8 (Antara) - This year's global economic uncertainties are expected to continue in 2017 and to affect the Indonesian economy, yet analysts have said Indonesia's economy is relatively strong in facing global challenges next year.         According to Finance Minister Sri Mulyani Indrawati on Wednesday, global conditions greatly affected Indonesia's economy this year, and the trend will continue in 2017. Therefore, in setting its economic assumptions for 2017, the government has adopted moderate steps.        In assuming its economic growth next year, the government has set itself a target of 5.1 percent, relatively lower than the rates estimated by many other institutions. However, Minister Mulyani argues that the 5.1 percent figure does not reflect any pessimism but optimism combined with prudence.         Several institutions have predicted higher growth. The World Bank, for example, has predicted Indonesia's economic growth at 5.3 percent for next year. Other institutions such as the Asian Development Bank (ADB), the Bloomberg Consensus Forecast, S&P, Fitch, and Moody's have set their predictions at 5.1 percent, 5.3 percent, 5.2 percent, 5.5 percent, and 5.2 percent, respectively.