They Learn from Indonesia

· 5 minutes read

NUSA DUA, KOMPAS — The countries in the world can work together to improve the welfare of their people. This spirit of mutual cooperation is being promoted at the 2018 IMF-World Bank Annual Meetings.

More than 34,000 people from 189 countries will attend the 2018 International Monetary Fund (IMF)-World Bank Annual Meetings in Nusa Dua, Bali, on Oct. 8-14. Amid global economic uncertainty, the meetings will highlight local wisdom, namely gotong royong (mutual cooperation) and Bhinneka Tunggal Ika (unity in diversity).

Solidarity for Indonesia was also expressed in the meetings. Solidarity was demonstrated for the victims and survivors of the earthquakes in Lombok, West Nusa Tenggara, and Central Sulawesi kicked off starting on Monday (8/10/2018) by the Indonesian government, Bank Indonesia (BI), the IMF and the World Bank through coffee. One cup of coffee from a number of regions in the archipelago is being sold at Rp 100,000 (US$6.57).

“Around 1,500 cups of coffee will be provided every day. This activity will be carried out during the IMF-World Bank Annual Meetings on Oct. 8-14. The proceeds will be donated to earthquake victims,” said the 2018 IMF-World Bank Annual Meetings Task Force chairman Peter Jacobs in Nusa Dua.

BI Governor Perry Warjiyo, the 2018 IMF-World Bank Annual Meetings National Committee chairman Luhut Pandjaitan, Finance Minister Sri Mulyani Indrawati and IMF managing director Christine Lagarde went to Guntur Macan village, Lombok, on Monday morning. They handed over aid to the victims of the Lombok and Central Sulawesi earthquakes.

“We never thought that Mount Agung in Bali would erupt, the earthquake would hit Lombok and the earthquakes and tsunami would hit Sulawesi. They were all out of plan, but we know Indonesia can handle it well,” Lagarde said. In her speech at the IMF headquarters in Washington DC, last week. Lagarde said the 2018 IMF-World Bank Annual Meetings in Bali were a challenging moment for Indonesia.

Indonesia has transformed in the last few decades, opening up its dynamic economy and utilizing the extraordinary creativity and diversity of its society.

Indonesia is known as a country that often suffers natural disasters.

“We can learn a lot from Indonesia and its partners in ASEAN, especially in building resilience, embracing openness and reaching out past national borders,” Lagarde said.

According to her, if countries work together, it is far more likely that they will improve the welfare of their people than by doing so individually. The multilateral spirit was well expressed in an Indonesian tradition, namely gotong royong or mutual cooperation to achieve common goals.

In the closing of her speech, Lagarde also explained about the diverse membership of the IMF from many countries. This is beautifully summarized in the Indonesian slogan Bhinneka Tunggal Ika (Unity in Diversity).

“When we sail the sea together, we are stronger, more agile, more able to control the ship through the ocean that fluctuates and avoids dangerous corals. So, now, when we welcome the ‘Voyage to Indonesia’ journey, let\'s work together to be able to direct our economy to the right direction and bring everyone, both large and small, to new and safer harbors,” Lagarde said.

This year’s meetings, which have been held since 1946, have taken the “Voyage to Indonesia” theme. Through this theme, the IMF-World Bank meetings in Bali are expected to generate new thoughts and policies amid global economic and financial uncertainty.

The annual meetings are usually held at the IMF headquarters, but every three years they are held outside Washington DC. This year, the meetings are being held in Indonesia, while in 2015 they were held in Peru.

In the IMF-World Bank annual meetings, there are usually two sets of agendas namely the main agenda and additional agendas. The main agenda consists of three meetings comprising the IMF-World Bank Group Plenary Session, the International Monetary and Financial Committee (IMFC) and the World Bank Development Committee.

In addition to the three meetings, there will also be an official meeting between members of the G-7, G-20, G-24, BRICS and bilateral and multilateral meetings.

In the meetings, Indonesia wants to introduce a new Indonesia. Indonesia is currently reforming, increasing its economic resilience to domestic and global turmoil and developing inclusivity.

Perry said Indonesia would fight for four priority themes in the financial sector at the 2018 IMF-World Bank Annual Meetings in Bali. The four themes are global economic policy, infrastructure financing, digital economy and Islamic economics and finance.

Added value

Luhut said, as the host country, Indonesia enjoyed added value in the tourism sector. “All hotels where participants are staying are paid for by the participants. The government only covers the cost of the venue,” said Luhut.

Luhut added that for this activity, the funding that was allocated in the 2017 and 2018 state budgets amounted to Rp 855 billion. As of yesterday, the amount that had been spent was Rp 556 billion.

President Joko “Jokowi” Widodo in North Sumatra said most of the budget was allocated for infrastructure improvements in Bali as a means of supporting meetings. “It means this is an investment because after the meetings we can keep using the facilities. It is not something that will be lost,” said the President.

Sri Mulyani said the countries participating in the meetings would have joint solutions and policies to overcome global economic uncertainty. In addition, amid natural disasters that have hit a number of countries, financial mitigation for disasters would also be discussed during the meetings. (HEN/DIM/NTA/RUL)

Editor:

IMF