TheRepublic of Indonesiais asovereign stateinSoutheast AsiaandOceania. Indonesia is anarchipelagocomprising13,466 islands.It encompasses33 provincesand1 Special Administrative Region (for being governed by a pre-colonial monarchy)with over 238 million people, making it the world's fourthmost populouscountry.

Indonesia's republic form of government comprises an elected legislature and president. The nation's capital city isJakarta. The country shares land borders withPapua New Guinea,East Timor, andMalaysia. Other neighboring countries includeSingapore, thePhilippines,Australia,Palau, and the Indian territory of theAndaman and Nicobar Islands.

Indonesia is a founding member ofASEANand a member of theG-20 major economies. The Indonesian economyis the world's16thlargest by nominal GDP.

Indonesia's national motto,"Bhinneka Tunggal Ika"("Unity in Diversity"), articulates the diversity that shapes the country.

We had the honour and pleasure to speak with His Excellency Mr. Semuel Samson, Ambassador of the Republic of Indonesia to Serbia.

1. Your Excellency, could You please tell us about Your impressions of Serbia and its capital city?

From my three years here, I have only the highest praise for Serbia and Belgrade. You have a society here that is pleasant and friendly. The city is very charming. It’s clean and shows a high level of urban planning, as well as having a good transport system. It is very interesting that the Government maintains historic buildings throughout the city, and in doing so preserves its cultural heritage.

My family and I are very impressed with Serbian culture, in which people still hold family values and a spirit of togetherness dear to their hearts, which is similar to what we see in Indonesia. We can make friends here in Serbia easily, as people frequently demonstrate their hospitality, inviting us to their family celebrations in order to share their joy.

2. For how long have You been Ambassador to Serbia, and what was Your previous occupation?

I have served as Ambassador in Serbia for 3 (three) years now. Before I became Ambassador, I was a businessman in the private sector, and I was also involved in politics.

3. Economic ties between Indonesia and Serbia have been evolving constantly in recent years. Can You tell us more about the current state of economic exchange, and how it might be improved?

Last year, our bilateral trade volume was USD 51.26 million, which is 25.4% more than in2012. Despitea relatively low value, we have seen dynamic growth on an exponential trajectory. Serbia’s exports to Indonesia grew tenfold, from a mere USD 1 million in 2010 to USD 11 million in 2013, while in 2013 Indonesia’s exports to Serbia started to recover after a dramatic fall in 2012.

According to data from 2013, Serbia mostly exported footwear to Indonesia, as this accounted for 44.6% of the total, followed by unclassified goods at 35.17%, articles of apparel and clothing accessories at 6.87%, and miscellaneous edible products and preparations at 5.86%. From Indonesia, Serbia mostly imported crude rubber (including synthetic and reclaimed rubber) 21.90%, electrical machinery and equipment 10.12%, articles of apparel and clothing accessories 7.8% and footwear 7.73%.

Some might be sceptical about the sustainability of this growth, since bilateral trade has remained concentrated on a narrow range of products. However, I would especially like to underline the continued support that our two governments have been giving to reducing barriers, and thus encouraginggreater diversification in terms of the goods to be traded across our borders.

It is generally evident that Serbian goods are insufficiently represented in the Indonesian market, and vice versa, and that sales opportunities are much more significant by comparison. Up to now, goods we’ve bought from Serbia have made up less than 1% of Indonesia's global imports and the volume of our exports to Serbia have represented less than 1% of Serbia's total purchases from the world. Indeed, one might say that these statistics are unacceptable. In spite of the fact that the two countries are thousands of miles apart, which inevitably affects expenditure as far as logistics is concerned, the potential benefits of engaging with each other in trade and investment far exceed the foreseeable economic costs. We believe the economies of Indonesia and Serbia possess a huge potential that businesses might unlock to their significant advantage.

Indonesia represents a market with significant potential for Serbia. The Indonesian economy could be characterised by its openness to international trade, and the increased buying power of a customer base of over 240 million inhabitants.

McKinsey predicts that Indonesia’s consuming class will rise to 135 million by 2030, from a figure of 45 million today. They also predict that by 2030 there will be a 1.8 trillion dollar market opportunity in Indonesia - a dramatic increase from 0.5 trillion dollars in 2012.

It is also the largest economy in the South East Asia region, strategically located at the intersection of the Pacific Ocean, along the Malacca Straits and the Indian Ocean, waters through which over half of all international shipping passes.

We learned valuable lessons from the Asian financial crisis of 1997-1998, and made efforts to transfer responsibility from what amounted previously to a few large companies, to a wider base of small and medium-sized enterprises, with a special emphasis on creative activities within the economy. This transformation, coupled with strong domestic demand, has boosted the economic resilience of Indonesia, and this has been proven by consistently strong growth over the last decade, even when other major economies were buckling under the pressure of global stagnation.

Serbia has also made a name for itself in the current economic environment, which is itself extremely demanding. Opportunities for Indonesian businesses stem from Serbia's successful industrial expansion, which has led the economy beyond its relatively small population base to become a favourite investment destination. It is also a strong candidate when we imagine a regional business and logistics hub for the East and Central Europe region.

We are encouraging Indonesian businesses to trade with and invest in Serbia, so that they might benefit from Serbia's growing domestic market and its strategic location both as a production base and a logistical hub.

It is therefore essential that companies, the chamber of commerce, and other business organizations from both countries undertake intensive marketing activities to increase the sales of their goods and services. One way is through participating in trade fairs held in Indonesia and Serbia, and frequent exchanges of business delegations to pave the way for the levelling up of market understanding.

To facilitate greater economic exchange, the two governments have signed a number of cooperation agreements, including the Agreement on Avoidance of Double Taxation (Jakarta, February 2011); the Agreement on Economic Cooperation (Belgrade, September 2011); the Agreement on the Protection and Promotion of Investment (Belgrade, September 2011); and the MoU on Cooperation for Investment Promotion between SIEPA and BKPM/ Indonesian Coordinating Board of Investment (Belgrade, June 2013). We are currently working to implement and bring about strategic impacts from the agreements, and we envisage further bilateral facilitation in the future, including an agreement on preferential access for goods and services.

Going forward, we expect cooperation between private companies from the two countries to increase.

The agricultural sector holds enormous potential where expanding on existing cooperation is concerned. Besides rubber, Indonesia is also a major producer of palm oil, cocoa, coffee, essential oils, spices, processed food, and medicinal herbs. On the other hand, Indonesia needs a large quantity of corn, wheat, sugar, and fruits, and Serbia could prove to be very helpful to us in terms of meeting our requirements.

5. When we consider investments, to what extent have Indonesian companies invested in Serbia, and in which areas?

Salim Group’s investment in Serbia (through its subsidiary, Indo Serbia Food) is most definitely the first instance of Indonesia having a direct business presence in Serbia. Since Indo Serbia Food has been up and running in Belgrade since 2011, their noodle and spaghetti products under the “Indomie” brand are now available in most parts of Serbia. As well as this, they control distribution for 12 countries in the region, up to Poland.

That is why, in order to maintain large-scale distribution, the company decided to make Serbia its production centre to meet these product requirements. With this in mind, the company acquired 50,000 square meters of land in Indjijain November 2013, and is now preparing for constructing of its noodle factory. We expect the plant to be fully operational in 2015.

Salim Group’s choice of Serbia as the production-centre for their products reflects confidence in Serbia’s advantages as well as its potential, which is expected to bring multiple benefits for the company along with access to markets in the Balkans and Central and Eastern Europe. Once again, this illustrates Serbia's economic centrality in the regional market.

What is not easy to determine, is to what extent Salim Group’s investment may attract others to follow. As one of Indonesia’s largest companies, Salim Group’sactivities in other countries, including Serbia, will almost certainly draw the attention of others in the Indonesian business community, and the Embassy is expecting to welcome more investment from Indonesia to Serbia.

6. How do our two countries cooperate in the fields of culture and education?

Cooperation between Indonesia and Serbia has always been good, and a strong relationship has existed for the past 60 years. Over those years, the Embassy has consistently encouraged the establishment of various forms of cooperation in many sectors, including education and culture.

In the education sector, we have seen an increase in the number of students from Serbia studying in Indonesia through our scholarship program; Darmasiswa, Art and Cultural Scholarship (ACS) and Kemitraan Negara Berkembang (KNB – the Developing Countires Partnership program on scholarship). Through the scholarship, students from Serbia are able to pursue their studies in Indonesia in order to major in various subjects from culture to tourism and social studies. We have also supported the implementation of the “World in Serbia’’ scholarship from the Serbian government, by means of which we have seen many students from Indonesia coming to Serbia to study at Masters or PhD level. They have even established a new Indonesian Student Association in Serbia; the last one existed in the 1970s.

Along with cooperation in the education sector, the Embassy has also supported the establishment at University level of cooperation between the University of Belgrade and the University of Padjajaran in Bandung, as well as the University of Syarif Hidayatullah in Jakarta.

Cooperation in cultural endeavours has always amounted to one of our main working programs, where through culture we’ve been able to further strengthen cooperation and understanding between the people of Indonesia and Serbia. Within the Embassy, we have 3 (three) cultural groups for traditional dance and the time-honoured music of Gamelan and Angklung, members of which are mainly Serbian students in Belgrade.

The Embassy has also held and supported various cultural events to promote and introduce Indonesian culture to Serbia, such as the Embassy cultural team’s performance at BITEF in 2010, Indonesia Day in the College of Tourism, performances in 15 cities in Serbia by students from the University of Indonesia, a Batik workshop and Fashion Show.

Then, of course, there were performances at Indonesian Night at the Crowne Plaza on the 25th of February last year, as well as events at our booth at the 36th International Fair of Tourism in Sajam, Belgrade, in February and March of this year (2014).

Through holding such events, we hope to bring the people of our two countries closer, and forge an understanding that will ultimately lead to the strong foundations we need for building further relations and cooperation.

7. A major tourism fair was held in Belgrade recently, for which Indonesia was the partner country. What is the level of tourism between our two countries, and how do You expect things to change following this event?

This year, Indonesia purposefully chose Serbia as its partner country for the promotion of tourism, since we envisaged many areas of potential that could be expolored by means of the fair. Serbia’s strategic location, and the number of representatives from the tourism industry who were involved in the fair, as well as the close relationship that exists between Indonesia and Serbia, has made Serbia a potential market for the promotion of Indonesia’s tourism industry.

Through participation at the Fair, our tourism industry was able to promote their tour packages and establish cooperation with counterparts in Serbia, with a view to encouraging and increasing the number of visits from Serbia to Indonesia and vice versa.

We’ve borne witness to many improvements in terms of flight connections to Indonesia, by which we find many airline companies offering effective and convenient connections between our two countires, and at competitive prices. Based on such a perspective, I am extremely pleased with the progress made recently, and also very optimistic with regard to tourist flow between our countries, which I believe will increase in the years to come.

8. When You have free time, how do You spend it in Belgrade? Do You have a favorite place that You return to again and again?

As I mentioned before, my family and I have enjoyed our stay in Serbia very much, especially the time we’ve spent in Belgrade. At weekends, we usually spend time walking in the park close to the Museum of Jugoslav History, which isn’t far from the Embassy. We often ride bicycles, and I enjoy sitting down and spending time with my family in Belgrade’s cafes, to enjoy the coffee and the pleasant atmosphere in the city. We also enjoy the wonderful music played by musicians in the many cafes and restaurants in Belgrade. In the summertime, we take great pleasure in sightseeing or relaxing at Ada Ciganlija, or in walking along the banks of the Danube and the Sava. We also like to visit mountains in Serbia, such as Kopaonik and Zlatibor, where we can enjoy the fresh air.

To my mind, Serbia is one of those very interesting places in the world, where you can enjoy yourself and where it’s easy to find natural green areas with beautiful landscapes. This is not to mention the fact that the Serbian people are very kind and friendly, or that you can also enjoy foods that are healthy and of the best possible quality. So, in my opinion, Serbia is definitely the right place to enjoy life with your family.

9. When You leave Serbia, what will Your most treasured memory be of the time You’ve spent in our country? What will You definitiely carry with You from Your experiences in Serbia?

In Indonesia generally, an Ambassador’s tenure is 3 (three) years, so because my duties here have recently entered their third year, I’ve to started making preparations to return Indonesia. What my Family and I will remember most from Serbia is the hospitality of its people, the beauty of the city and the country’s scenery, the healthy food, kajmak, the fine quality meat, wine, rakija and especially the historical background of the relationship between Indonesia and Serbia, which has amounted to a positive and strong relationship since Soekarno and the Tito era.

My enjoyable experiences over the last 3 years here in Serbia have provided me with clear evidence of what Serbia must have been like 30 or 40 years ago. In such a way, I have a clear understanding of why we were taught in school that there was a beautiful, prosperous and advanced country named Yugoslavia, and that it was a friend to Indonesia. Now, it is no surprise to me that our late President Soekarno visited Yugoslavia very often, indeed it was recorded that he visited up to 6 or 7 times in the 50s and 60s.

What we will take back to Indonesia (besides a great many souvenirs) are lovely memories and the enduring spirit of friendship shown to us through the hospitality of the Serbian people, which has left an indelible impression on our hearts. This is something never to be forgotten, and I hope the friendships established between my family and people in Serbia will continue to develop even after we return to Indonesia.