Indonesia and Laos to Amend Partnership
Friday, 26 January, 2007 | 15:36 WIB

TEMPO Interactive, Jakarta: Both the Indonesian government and the Laos Democratic Republic government are planning to improve their partnership of commerce following the meeting of the new Laos Prime Minister Bouasone Bouphavanh with President Soesilo Bambang Yudhoyono today (01/26) at the Indonesian Presidential office.

Both countries considered they should amend their partnership on trade, economics and investment because in the upcoming 50 years of Indonesian-Laos relationship, the value of commerce between the two countries stood at US$12 million last year. In fact, the value of commerce between Laos and other ASEAN countries reached US$550 million.

“So, the percentage was only about one to two percent,” said the Presidential spokesperson of the foreign affairs division Dino Patti Djalal in a press conference on Friday (01/26). One of the obstacles in managing commerce, said Dino, is that Laos does not have coastal areas.

The Indonesian government, said Dino, expected that the commerce partnership with Laos will have good prospects since Laos' process of reform can be the grounds in forming a tighter economic relation, mainly on trade and investment. In addition, 40 countries have invested in Laos, with Laos' economic rate of growth of 7.5 percent. “They expect that the economic growth in 2007 will reach 8 percent.”

Badriah