INVESTMENT BLUEPRINT

MINISTERS from Singapore and Indonesia have endorsed a framework agreement that will improve the investment climate in the Indonesian islands of Batam, Bintan and Karimun.

Dubbed the "Action Roadmap", the plan is the result of a bilateral agreement signed between the two countries in June. It provides details on improving economic cooperation in nine key areas.

The areas are: capability development, customs, immigration, infrastructure development, investment, industrial relations, manpower wages, taxation, as well as training and certification.

Targets in these areas will be achieved over the next 18 months, with the aim of streamlining processes, simplifying documentation, easing business travel and cutting bureaucratic bottlenecks.

This comes on the back of calls made by Indonesian President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono to make the Batam, Bintan and Karimun Special Economic Zones "faster, better, cheaper".

Singapore's Minister for Trade and Industry, Mr Lim Hng Kiang, said in a statement: "For the initiative in Batam, Bintan and Karimun to be successful in retaining and attracting investors, actual implementation is critical."

He co-chairs the joint steering committee that oversees the implementation with Indonesia's Coordinating Minister for Economic Affairs, Dr Boediono.