Members of the Indonesian diaspora in various parts of the world have shared their optimism in welcoming 2023. Moreover, even in the midst of pressure, there is always space for working on opportunities.
By
MARIA PASCHALIA JUDITH JUSTIARI, YOSEPHA DEBRINA RATIH PUSPARISA
·4 minutes read
YOSEPHA DEBRINA RATIH PUSPARISA
Moderator and several speakers at Kompas Talks, namely Maria Paschalia Judith, President of the Indonesian Diaspora Network (IDN) Global Kartini Salsilaningsih, Trade Attache in Ankara Eric Gokasi Nababan, Head of Export School Handito Joewono, and Head of Indonesian Trade Promotion Center Sydney Christophorus Barutu on Thursday ( 29/12/2022).
JAKARTA, KOMPAS – The Covid-19 pandemic and the Russia-Ukraine war have cast a shadow over the global economic and geopolitical dynamics throughout 2022. However, there is hope that 2023 can still be welcomed with optimism, while looking for a break in opportunities in the midst of continuing pressures.
"We really have to be concerned, life cannot always be happy, [but] we must still be vigilant and resilient to take advantage of opportunities," Indonesian Ambassador to Australia Siswo Pramono said by video link during Kompas Talks on Thursday (29/12/2022).
Ahead of welcoming 2023, Kompas held a Virtual Diaspora Gathering titled "Seeing the light in the coming year". Besides Siswo, the forum also featured Indonesian Ambassador to Turkey Lalu Muhamad Iqbal, head of the Indonesian Trade Promotion Center (ITPC) in Sydney Christophorus Barutu, and Export School principal Handito Joewono.
Pandemi is under control
Siswo said that the Covid-19 pandemic was relatively under control compared to the last two years, even though its impacts would continue to be felt for the next few years.
However, this was not the first time that the citizens of the world had faced a pandemic, having overcome various other outbreaks, such as SARS and HIV/AIDS.
The crisis resulting from the Russia-Ukraine war was also expected to be prolonged because there was no solution to mediate the two sides. Humanity had also been through many previous wars, such as the two World Wars and the Cold War.
The Industry 4.0 era was marked by social and technological progress involving many players (multi-actor). Today, influence comes from not only countries and political leaders, but also multinational companies, micro, small and medium enterprises, and the diaspora.
"Each has an interest that cannot be dictated. The world cannot be dictated again by one or two leaders," Siswo added.
Similarly, Indonesian Ambassador to Turkey Lalu Muhamad Iqbal said this was the first time in modern history that all people were facing global issues without a global leader.
This could help all parties find a pattern for global leadership, a leadership pattern that was not singular, but plural.
YOSEPHA DEBRINA RATIH PUSPARISA
Indonesian Ambassador to Australia Siswo Pramono in Kompas Talks: Seeing the Light in the Coming Year online on Thursday (29/12/2022).
Indonesia could also learn from Turkey on how to take advantage of the situation by continuing to uphold non-bloc attitudes. Although Indonesia was still classified as a developing country, consistency would be the one principle that would be beneficial for Indonesia.
Iqbal expected Indonesia to face a bright year in 2023. He saw that the Turkey and Indonesia had many opportunities, including in the fields of defense and industrial cooperation.
"Turkey in the future seems to be one of the nontraditional sources for the supply of Indonesia’s Alutsista (national defense weaponry and systems) because of its technology. The country is the second-largest force after the United States in NATO," said Iqbal, referring to the North Atlantic Treaty Organization.
As the country with the largest Muslim population in the world, Indonesia needed to take advantage of halal certification to go worldwide. One such cooperation had been agreed with Turkey’s halal institution. As a result, Indonesian products certified halal would automatically be certified halal by Turkey.
Market penetration
Export School principal Handito Joewono said Indonesia had a golden opportunity in the coming year in trading globally on a massive scale.
Indonesia could use its agricultural, forestry and fisheries products as the basis of its transactions with other countries. Indonesia could use this time when other countries had reduced production capacity as an opportunity.
"We make warehouses there. We make factories. When other countries stop investing, we will still have the ability to enter here and there," said Handito.
The coming year would offer a golden moment, so this sector needed to be explored as much as possible. The government had readied various infrastructure, such as seaports, airports and toll roads.
When other countries stop investing, we will still have the ability to enter here and there.
Economic and political relations had also been established. However, entrepreneurs, especially young people, had not moved. According to Handito, it was time for the government to provide incentives to new business actors to greatly boost exports.
ITPC Sydney head Christophorus Barutu added that the people were still fixated on instant benefits from exports. However, they neglected the process.
There were at least three important points to penetrating the Australian market: product quality, sustainability, and business ethics. The Australian market provided a great opportunity for environmentally friendly products, such as electric vehicles. This was because Australia was bound by regulatory restrictions to meet its emissions reduction target to net zero by 2050. (JUD/Z17)
