JAKARTA, April 12 (Xinhua) -- The Economic Partnership Agreement (EPA) signed with Indonesia last year is expected to enter into force by July 2008, paving the way for more Japanese investment and trade between the two countries, said a Japanese diplomat.
"We're waiting for ratification by our upper and lower houses, and we expect the agreement will likely be effective by July," deputy chief of the Japanese Embassy in Indonesia Satoru Satoh was quoted as saying by local daily The Jakarta Post published Saturday.
The EPA, which was signed by Indonesia and Japan on Aug. 20, 2007, in Jakarta, is a comprehensive economic pact that involves the cutting or elimination of various import tariffs, increasing of Japanese investment in new sectors in Indonesia and capacity-building programs for Indonesian industry and manpower.
Japan is Indonesia's largest trading partner as well as foreign investor.
"We have over 1,000 Japanese companies in Indonesia and they employ around 200,000 Indonesians," Satoh said in an interview with the daily.
Bilateral trade in 2007 between Indonesia and Japan, according to Indonesian statistics, jumped to a record high of 30.15 billion U.S. dollars, a 10.69 percent increase from 27.24 billion dollars in 2006.
"This is mainly due to the high prices oil and gas as well as commodities," Satoh said.
He said the balance of trade has been in favor of Indonesia for many years because Japan buys more oil and gas, minerals and commodities from Indonesia.
Indonesian exports to Japan reached 23.63 billion dollars in 2007, while imports stood at 6.52 billion.
Satoh said that after the ratification of the EPA, one of the first projects that would immediately ensue was the dispatching of several Indonesian nurses and retirement home attendants to work in Japan.
" We'll provide a six-month language training in Japan before sending them off to their respective workplaces. After two years, they will have to take a test to see if they are qualified to continue working," he said.
