The shipping industry
expects the government to concentrate on preparing sea transport logistics
sector to face the ASEAN Economic Community (AEC) 2015. Currently, the
competitiveness of sea transport logistics encouraging increase of the share of
national ship transport sector in overseas transportation (exports and
imports), which is still low. So far, the government has published a Decree of
Minister of Finance No. 41/2014 on the obligation to keep records of export
value based on CIF value.
In order to face AEC in 2015, the shipping sector should
be provided with a relaxation policy in the fiscal and monetary sector and
technical rules in order to be on par with other countries in the ASEAN region.
These policies are in accordance with Law No. 17/2018 on shipping. Article 57
stated that the empowerment of national sea transport industry must be done by
the government. Empowerment of the shipping industry is by providing financing
and taxation facilities, facilitating long-term partnership contract between
the owner of the goods and the owner of the vessel and to guarantee the
available of oil fuel for transportation in the waters.
Ajiph Razifwan Anwar, head of Maritime Transport of the
Indonesian Transportation Society (MTI), in Jakarta, on Wednesday (October 8),
considered that the government needs to encourage port efficiency and set
cruise trajectory system before AEC 2015. Ajiph said that liberalization in AEC
2015 covers seven priority services sectors. To date, the airline industry is
one of the services sectors, while the shipping industry is predicted to be at
a later stage.
To the end, the government should immediately pursue the
readiness of the shipping industry with regard to AEC, especially regarding the
reduction of national logistics cost which reached 26% of GDP. According to
him, Indonesia cannot just be proud of the growth of marine transport
population which reached 13,000 ships, if the cost of sea transport is more
expensive than other countries. He pointed out that the cost of shipment of 20
TEU containers from Jakarta to Kendari is more expensive than if the goods were
transported by train to Surabaya and shipped to Kendari. This condition is because competition among
shipping operators on some routes is not impartial.
The same thing is also expressed by the Director of the
National Maritime institute (NAMARIN), Siswanto Rusdi. According to Siswanto,
the challenge for the shipping industry next year after the implementation of
AEC will be more complex.
He revealed that NAMARIN encourage to the birth of
Presidential Instruction No. 5/2005 on National Shipping Industry Empowerment.
Through the Presidential Instruction, the cabotage principle is revitalized,
which is then formally adopted by Law No. 17/2008 on shipping. Through this
regulation, starting 2014, the national shipping industry is encourage to use
domestic ships (cabotage principle). Since it was enacted in 2005, national
shipping fleet increased by 3,000 units, bringing the total of national ships
to more than 10,000 units. In the last five years, INSA recorded that
investment to support the cabotage principle is through the purchase of 6,157
units of ships worth USD 15.4 billion.
NAMARIN, said Siswanto, also encouraged the Indonesian
National Ship-owners Association (INSA) to create a breakthrough in supporting
the national shipyards. Another problem in the cabotage principle that needs to
be addressed by INSA is equality between all players of the shipping industry.
He considered that so far, the cabotage principle is more profitable to
well-established shipping companies, which number is small. INSA should
encourage so that the cabotage principle involves small-scale shipping
companies. Siswanto asserted that if INSA could successfully perform an
internal consolidation, empower, and unite the role of the shipping industry in
cabotage principle, the national shipping industry will be able to compete in
AEC 2015. (E)
Business New - October 10, 2014
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