According to Airlanggi Hartanto, Coordinating Minister of Economic Affairs of the Republic of Indonesia, Indonesia has set itself an ambitious goal of completing the technique of joining the Paris-based Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) inside two to a few years. As Southeast Asia’s largest economy, Indonesia wants to extend its investment attractiveness and negotiate more trade agreements by becoming a member of the OECD.
The organization, often known as the “developed countries club,” recently announced the beginning of membership talks with Indonesia. Shortly after the announcement, Hartanto hosted a dinner in Jakarta with ambassadors from 33 OECD member countries. Only representatives of nations with embassies in Indonesia, excluding Israel, were present. The dinner took place mainly in an intimate atmosphere, without media coverage.
Hartanto expressed optimism that Indonesia can be accepted as an OECD member because the country had followed several OECD best practices. In 2020, Indonesia successfully passed the Job Creation Law, which mainly goals to cut back bureaucratic barriers, especially regarding investment and business permits.
He also mentioned that Indonesia will work with the OECD to finalize a roadmap document containing detailed requirements, conditions and stages for accession, which can be presented on the OECD Ministerial Council meeting in May.
The accession process is predicted to be accomplished inside 2-3 years. For your information, Indonesia is the primary Southeast Asian country to use for OECD membership.
During the OECD accession process, Indonesia can be subject to a rigorous review, including comprehensive assessments on trade, anti-corruption and climate change. This is to ascertain Indonesia’s compliance with OECD standards.
The OECD stated that there is no such thing as a set deadline for completing the accession process. Its completion will depend on Indonesia’s ability to align with the standards and best practices beneficial by the OECD.
