Belt and Road takes ties to 'next level'

Maritime power

Widodo visited Beijing in 2015 where he said that Indonesia welcomes Chinese enterprises to take part in infrastructure development and establishment of special economic zones. Xi and Widodo agreed to enhance comprehensive strategic partnership. Xi said China's initiative of building the 21st Century Maritime Silk Road highly accords with the strategy of Indonesia in building itself as a maritime power.

President Widodo was also one of the leaders who participated in the first Belt and Road Forum for International Cooperation in Beijing. In 2019, during the Group of 20 Summit in Japan, Widodo met with Xi and said that Indonesia is ready to work with China to jointly build the BRI, deepen economic and trade relations and advance the construction of the Jakarta-Bandung high-speed rail project. The HSR has a top speed of 350 kilometers per hour and is expected to significantly cut the three-hour travel time between Jakarta and Bandung in West Java Province.

The BRI has played a crucial role in strengthening economic ties between China and Indonesia, according to Dedi Dinarto, lead Indonesia analyst at public policy advisory firm Global Counsel. He said Chinese foreign direct investment has grown significantly in the past few years, from800 million in 2014 to8 billion in 2022.

Dinarto said President Widodo, more known by his nickname "Jokowi", has used the financial opportunities offered by the BRI and the increased Chinese FDI to attain his administration's economic development goals.

"Using these substantial funds from China, Jokowi's administration has made significant progress in developing energy, industrial, and infrastructure sectors," Dinarto said. He said the BRI projects have not only benefited local companies involved in joint ventures but have also created employment opportunities for Indonesian workers.

Kamdani of Sintesa said the BRI is also facilitating technology transfer from China to Indonesia. She cited one of the BRI's biggest projects, the Jakarta-Bandung high-speed railway, saying that this is "an important milestone" for China and Indonesia.

The HSR is scheduled to have a trial run later this month. Kamdani said that Indonesia is the first country in the Southeast Asian region to have a bullet train and that it represents a key step in advancing Indonesia's infrastructure development.

She said that in PT Kereta Cepat Indonesia China, or KCIC, the joint venture that is managing the HSR, there are a total of 15,487 workers, of which 87 percent are Indonesians while the remaining are foreign workers. Most of the foreign workers are involved in the train's operation and development. "I think through their involvement and direct collaboration with experts, knowledge and technology transfer occur between foreign and local workers," she said.

Kamdani also hopes that more Indonesians will be aware of the BRI. She said that while most people know about China-Indonesia projects, they are not aware it's part of the BRI. She said the BRI needs to be promoted further.

Leonardus Jegho in Jakarta contributed to this story.