The Jakarta Representative Office of Korea Eximbank held its opening ceremony in Indonesia on Dec. 22 and initiated its operations.

The ceremony was attended by President & Chairman Yong Hwan Kim of Korea Eximbank, Korean Ambassador to Indonesia Young Sun Kim, Minister Armida S. Alisjahbana of the National Development Agency and Vice Minister Rahmat Waluyanto of Ministry of Finance, as well as many representatives from the financial sector including CEO I Made Gde Erata of Indonesia Eximbank and President Gatot Mudiantoro Suwondo of BNI*.

* BNI (Bank Negara Indonesia): a state-owned commercial bank ranked second in Indonesia with USD 27.3 billion in total assets and USD 3.6 billion in equity.

The Jakarta Representative Office is anticipated to serve as an outpost for enhancing economic cooperation between the two countries through EDCF support in infrastructure development projects such as airports and railways prioritized by the Indonesian government as well as through financing arrangements of export-import activities and overseas investments to support Korean companies in Indonesia.

During the ceremony, Chairman Kim stated, “Indonesia is not only a leading member country in ASEAN but also the only country in East Asia to be among the G20 countries. Indonesia is also Korea’s tenth largest trading partner and sixth largest recipient of overseas investment by Korea. As such, Korea Eximbank will increase EDCF supports and export financing to Indonesia in order to assist development of Indonesia’s socio-economic infrastructure and economy.

Speaking after Chairman Kim, Minister Armida S. Alisjahbana of the National Development Agency announced, “The Indonesian government aims to become the ninth largest economy in the world by 2025 through the government’s 2011-2025 Economic Development Master Plan. In order to fully accomplish this goal, we would like to learn from the economic development experience of Korea.”

After the opening ceremony, Chairman Kim and Rahmat Waluyanto, Vice Minister of Finance in charge of foreign capital, signed EDCF loan agreements for the USD 100 million project for construction of Karian Multipurpose Dam** and the USD 40 million project for integrated trunking radio communication for Indonesia national police***.

** The Karian Multipurpose Dam is anticipated to increase the rate of water service coverage from 18% in 2008 to 25% by 2025 in Jakarta and neighboring areas, home to more than 12 million residents. As a result of the project, an additional two million residents will have access to safe and stable water supplies.

*** Through effective surveillance of illegal deforestation in Borneo, one of the largest tropical rain forests in the world, the project is anticipated to help maintain public order and mitigate global warming.

Chairman Kim also signed a USD 100 million untied two-step loan**** agreement with President Gatot Mudiantoro Suwondo of BNI.

****Through a line of credit with an overseas bank, Korea Eximbank enables Korean companies located overseas to borrow needed funds for facility investments and operation, or local importers to borrow money for purchasing Korean goods and services. Through this untied two-step loan agreement with BNI, Korean companies in Indonesia can receive various loans from BNI for local business transactions.