Looking Back To The Relationship Between Paraguay, Indonesia and Tempeh

by: Peter Tase – Journalist from American Congress Library, residing in Paraguay and in The United States of Amerika

Two years ago, it was precisely on November 29, 2014, Paraguay celebrated 33 years of bilateral relations with the Republic of Indonesia, the country with the 4th largest population country in the world with over 250 million inhabitants. As part of the G11 member countries focusing on the alleviating of poverty, Indonesia and Paraguay became a member of the World Trade Organization in 1995.

Although there is a large potential opportunity to improve bilateral relations between the two countries in trade, politics and economics, and eventhough Jakarta is one of the fifteen most important cities in trade relations with Paraguay, The Foreign Minister of Paraguay viewed from the other side. For example, a great giant of Southeast Asia has been importing more than US $ 19.5 million in 2012, and the value of imports increased significantly in 2013 to reach more than US $ 121.8 million, which would provide benefits for Paraguay than the value of trade in goods.

But unfortunately the good relationship in trading was not followed by the Paraguayian government’s strategy appropriately, where the actual big business opportunity can be done through a framework of cooperation in the Free Trade Agreement between Indonesia and Paraguay, as well as between Paraguay and the ASEAN countries (currently ASEAN is the biggest trading group in the world along with Japan, China and Russia). Instead of getting the trade opportunities that can only be obtained once in a lifetime, the government of Paraguay still do the implementation of their own policies.

The commercial agreement was considered favorably for Paraguay and the efforts conducted by Minister Gustavo Leite and his colleagues in the Ministry of Industry and Commerce (MIC) together with the Network of Investment and Export Paraguay (REDIEX) was really astonished and showed the outstanding performance, Asuncion for the first time has visionary and pragmatic leader.

Paraguay: Main supplier of primary food ingredients to Indonesia

Located between Brazil and Argentina with an area of 406 750 km2 coextensive similar to California in the United States, Paraguay has shown remarkable economic growth and emerged as the seventh largest beef producer in the world in the present time as hopes to become the fifth largest producer in 2018.

Apart from being one of the beef suppliers with high qualified in the world, Paraguay, the country called as Corazon of Latin America has great potential to supply soybeans, soybean oil, and organic sugar to Indonesia. Asuncion is the largest supplier of organic sugar to the United States in 2011, which mostly re-imported by the countries in European Union.

One of the traditional food products in Indonesia is tempeh and it is made from cooked and fermented soy beans and Indonesia needs a supply of soybeans in very large numbers to meet the needs of the market every day. Although the extent of only one-third of Indonesia, Paraguay is the 4th largest soybean producer in the world. The provision of soybeans, material for tempeh and tofu is not comparable with the consumption, forcing Indonesia to import the soybeans from other country. Now it is the time for Paraguay to establish the harmonious cooperation as MITRA TEMPE Indonesia through bilateral cooperation agreement thus Indonesia can import the soyabeans directly from Paraguay to Indonesia at a very competitive price, without going through the intermediaries from other country.

The cooperation between the two countries can be established in harmony, if the two countries can support each other, for example in terms of trade, technology and tourism. Indonesia already gone far in the field of oil and natural gas, and tourism and can provide technological assistance to Paraguay newly discovered oil fields and natural gas in the Chaco region. As a strategic sector, the discovery of oil fields and natural gas in the Chaco requires the assistance from experts of oil and Indonesia natural, in order to exploit oil and gas resources is consistent with the principles of sustainability and environmentally friendly.

The drilling Industrial for Indonesia’s oil natural gas Indonesia plays an important role in national and with rich experience in this field, will be a great asset for the government of Paraguay, which will initially exploring for oil and natural gas. After 20 years in the future, Asunción need to diversify the national energy production.

Two hydroelectric dams, Itaipu and Yacyreta, which are still in operation will not be enough to supply the energy nationally, hence the construction of the new hydroelectric dams on the river stretching throughout Paraguay and reaches a distance of over 6,500 km, as well as the use of resources of oil and gas nature effectively with the help of Indonesian experts would be a great value in the future. Paraguay as the nation aiming to have a diversity of renewable energy matrix production.

On the other hand, Paraguay as the country with the highest income per capita in South America, can send hundreds or even thousands of tourists to see the beauty of Indonesia and Paraguay young people can learn a variety of art of cultural diversity at the various universities in Indonesia or vice versa. It was unlucky, the relations that has already been established between Ascusion and Jakarta should end up with the grief of ambassador and plenipotentiary in Jakarta, Cesar Esteban Grillon resigned for personal reasons while Ascusion not specify whether Jakarta is still more important from any other city in Southeast Asia for business bilateral.