Indonesia to Release 15th Economic Policy Package Soon

Minister Darmin Nasution said the government wants to become self-sufficient in the pharmaceutical and medical equipment sectors within the foreseeable future. Currently, approximately 90 percent of medical equipment and raw materials for the country's pharmaceutical industry is imported from abroad. In the 11th economic policy package, released on 29 March 2016, the government already called for the design of a roadmap for the pharmaceutical industry. However, the new (15th) policy package will provide more details.

Akhmad Akbar Susamto, economist at Core Indonesia, commented on the new economic policy package, saying all packages are a step in the right direction. However, the full implementation of these packages remains a difficult matter, particularly due to the high degree of bureaucracy and weak quality of human resources at the (local) government (the "what's in it for me - mentality" still exists among government officials and staff). Therefore, efforts to ease red tape by cutting the number of permits that are required for a specific investment purpose (hence speeding up the process) have not all been fruitful yet.

On 10 November 2016 the government had already released the 14th economic policy package. This edition focuses on a roadmap for the nation's e-commerce industry aiming to turn Indonesia into a digitally focused economy. The e-commerce sector of Indonesia contains great potential due to rapidly rising Internet and smartphone penetration. Currently, there are 93.4 million 93.4 million Internet users and 71 million smartphone users in Indonesia. However, given that the total population numbers more than 255 million people, there is still plenty of room for growth.

The development of the e-commerce industry will make the Indonesian economy more efficient and encourage creativity and innovation.

Economic Stimulus Packages of the Indonesian Government:

Package	Unveiled	Main Points
1st	9 September 2015	• Boost industrial competitiveness through deregulation • Curtail red tape • Enhance law enforcement & business certainty
2nd	30 September 2015	• Interest rate tax cuts for exporters • Speed up investment licensing for investment in industrial estates • Relaxation import taxes on capital goods in industrial estates & aviation
3rd	7 October 2015	• Cut energy tariffs for labor-intensive industries
4th	15 October 2015	• Fixed formula to determine increases in labor wages • Soft micro loans for >30 small & medium, export-oriented, labor-intensive businesses
5th	22 October 2015	• Tax incentive for asset revaluation • Scrap double taxation on real estate investment trusts • Deregulation in Islamic banking
6th	5 November 2015	• Tax incentives for investment in special economic zones
7th	4 December 2015	• Waive income tax for workers in the nation's labor-intensive industries • Free leasehold certificates for street vendors operating in 34 state-owned designated areas
8th	21 December 2015	• Scrap income tax for 21 categories of airplane spare parts • Incentives for the development of oil refineries by the private sector • One-map policy to harmonize the utilization of land
9th	27 January 2016	• Single billing system for port services conducted by SOEs • Integrate National Single Window system with 'inaportnet' system • Mandatory use of Indonesian rupiah for payments related to transportation activities • Remove price difference between private commercial and state postal services
10th	11 February 2016	• Removing foreign ownership cap on 35 businesses • Protecting small & medium enterprises as well as cooperatives
11th	29 March 2016	• Lower tax rate on property acquired by local real estate investment trusts • Harmonization of customs checks at ports (to curtail dwell time) • Government subsidizes loans for export-oriented small & medium enterprises • Roadmap for the pharmaceutical industry
12th	28 April 2016	• Enhancing the ease of doing business in Indonesia by cutting procedures, permits and costs
13th	24 August 2016	• Deregulation for residential property projects for low-income families
14th	10 November 2016	• Creating a roadmap for the nation's e-commerce industry: - easing and widening access to funding - offer tax incentives - harmonize regulations and gradually develop a national payment gateway - promote e-commerce awareness campaigns and improve e-commerce education - accelerate the development of high-speed broadband network - improve the e-commerce logistics system
15th	?

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