By: Made Prawira )*
Law Number 11 of 2020 concerning Job Creation has received appreciation from other countries. The law that cuts the overlapping rules also attracts the attention of other countries to invest in Indonesia.
On March 15, 2022, the Presidential Staff Office (KSP) received a visit from the new Bahraini Ambassador to Indonesia, Ahmed Abdulla Ahmed AlHarmasi AlHajeri. The head of KSP, Moeldoko also invited investors from Bahrain to invest in Indonesia, and jointly increase the volume of trade between the two countries, which is currently still relatively small.
In his written statement Moeldoko said, “We must work to improve bilateral relations between Indonesia and Bahrain. One of them is related to efforts to encourage Bahraini entrepreneurs to invest in Indonesia.” According to Moeldoko, Indonesia views Bahrain as an important and strategic partner, namely as a gateway to enter the Gulf Cooperation Council countries.
In terms of trade between the two countries, the volume of trade between Indonesia and Bahrain is still relatively small, at around US$225 million in 2019. This value is even lower in 2020, to only US$170 million, with Indonesia’s deficit position.
Meanwhile, Ambassador Ahmed stated that his party welcomed Moeldoko’s invitation for Bahraini investors to invest in Indonesia. In this regard, Ahmed also appreciates the existence of the Omnibus Law on the Job Creation Law, which he considers to be able to provide certainty for investors who invest in Indonesia.
According to him, the Job Creation Law can build the confidence of business actors from Bahrain to come and invest in Indonesia. In addition, the Kingdom of Bahrain is also interested in the potential for developing the National Capital (IKN) of the Archipelago in East Kalimantan. They are interested in knowing more about what is the potential there. So that the country can invest appropriately.
Previously, the Governor of Bank Indonesia (BI) Perry Warjiyo explained several reasons foreign investors are still interested in investing in Indonesia. One of them is the monetary and fiscal policies built by the government that make investors believe.
The Head of the Fiscal Policy Agency (BKF) of the Ministry of Finance, Febrio Nathan Kacaribu, confirmed that the enactment of the Job Creation Law will help increase Indonesia’s competitiveness in the international arena. This is because the law is able to realize structural reforms that can significantly affect the quality of human resources.
He said the job creation law was very influential on comprehensive structural reforms starting from the lowest education sector in the country. Because, in this law every education budget in the APBN will be directed to improve the quality of education outcomes. The success indicator can be measured when the Program for International Student Assessment (PISA) ranking of Indonesian HR increases significantly.
With the increase in the quality of domestic human resources, foreign and domestic investors will be increasingly interested in investing in Indonesia, considering that HR is a very important factor for rapid transformation in the next few months.
When investment increases, of course employment also increases, and this is the true goal of the Job Creation Law, for the welfare of the community. Previously, Indonesian Vice President Ma’ruf Amin said that the Ciptaker Law aimed to create a conducive climate for investment and the business world.
Ma’ruf Amin also ensured that the Ciptaker Law was the government’s response to the demands of the community. Especially the guidelines for creating job opportunities, improving the bureaucracy and simplifying regulations as well as creating a conducive climate for investment and the business world.
The Job Creation Law also provides legal certainty and convenience with the existence of standards, particularly in relation to the requirements and the business licensing process. This aims to avoid irregularities in the business licensing process.
The existence of the Job Creation Act is not only a breath of fresh air for the economic sector, but is also able to attract foreign investors to invest in Indonesia. One of them is Bahrain, who is interested in investing in Indonesia after learning about the existence of the Job Creation Law in Indonesia. )* The author is a contributor to Pertiwi Institute
