On Thursday morning, September 15, 2016, the Faculty of Economics and Business was chosen as one of the few campuses by the Directorate General of International Trade Negotiations, Ministry of Trade of the Republic of Indonesia, to conduct a socialization of the results and process of the ongoing negotiations. Present at the event was the Secretary of the Directorate General of International Trade Negotiations, Mr. Syamsul Bahri. The event, which was initially targeted to be attended by only 100 students, turned out to be very enthusiastic from students, so that the number of participants who participated in the socialization agenda reached 230 students.
On this occasion, three speakers were presented, all experts in the field of international economics, both trade and finance. The first speaker was Fithra Faisal Hastiadi, Ph.D., a lecturer at the Faculty of Economics and Business, University of Indonesia, who is also active in LPEM FEB UI. The second speaker was Dr. Yose Rizal Damuri, Head of the Department of Economics at the Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS). The last speaker was Rossanto Dwi Handoyo, Ph.D., a lecturer and economist from the Faculty of Economics and Business.
The three speakers shared their views on the development of international trade cooperation, which over the past two decades has been marked by the emergence of new international trade blocs following the deadlock in negotiations at the WTO (World Trade Organization) level. This also indicates an increasingly equitable distribution of power capable of driving international trade activities. Previously the domain of developed countries in the northern hemisphere, this power has now been balanced by the power of developing countries in the southern hemisphere. These trading blocs include ASEAN with several surrounding countries such as China, Australia, and Japan, and the recently emerged trading bloc, the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP).
The above situation provides an opportunity for Indonesia to optimize its foreign trade achievements. In this context, the Directorate General of Trade Negotiations plays a crucial role in smoothing the national export target. This is considering that international trade activities are not solely influenced by economic factors, but many non-economic factors are also determining variables. This is especially true of non-tariff barriers imposed by destination countries on goods from Indonesia.
In the Q&A and discussion session, one of the senior lecturers of FEB UNAIR, Mr. Soebagyo, gave a note about the need for the government to prepare thoroughly before entering a free trade bloc, especially in terms of the competitiveness of domestic products. The same thing was also agreed by Mr. Rossanto that currently Indonesia's competitiveness is still very weak compared to competing countries. So comprehensive and thorough preparation is an absolute requirement before we decide to become part of a trade agreement bloc.
At the end of the event, Mr. Syamsul Bahri as the secretary of the Director General of PPI conveyed several things related to trade negotiation activities with any country. The Directorate General of PPI will not sign an agreement unless the agreement opens market access for Indonesian entrepreneurs, creates new investments from partner countries, and there is capacity building from partner countries towards Indonesia's economic performance.