ER
ONE of the potential investors from Japan’s Mitsui Group requires two things to be able to invest in the development of health tourism in Bali.
First, the qualifications of Indonesian doctors must meet foreign standards. Second, there is an ideal proportion related to the balance of foreign investors and domestic investors.
According to the Assistant Deputy for Strategic Investment at the Coordinating Ministry for Maritime Affairs & Investment, Bimo Wijayanto said the Mitsui Group wants doctors in Indonesia to meet the qualifications of foreign doctors, such as Malaysia and Singapore with the same technological mastery tools.
“As well as being able to accept professional medical personnel from outside to accelerate the ability of domestic medical personnel. From the supply side of drugs, as much as possible must be in Bali or Indonesia, so as not to cause imports that cause a negative trade balance. Indonesia imports more than exports, so the trade balance is negative. This is one of the conditions to be balanced,” he said.
Based on World Bank data in 2018, as many as 60% of tourists to Malaysia and 45% of tourists to Singapore for the purpose of medical examinations were Indonesian citizens. With a potential expenditure of US$6 billion-US$7 billion.
“This potential is what we want to get, and Bali itself has proposed 43 hectares of land for the development of health tourism. Bali is one of 10 provinces that can develop health tourism, including Jakarta and Medan,” Bimo Wijayanto noted.
He concluded that after discussing with the consortium from Australia, the development of health tourism could reach US$1 billion. It’s just that this value is not known for development in Bali alone or it is further divided between Medan and Jakarta. [sources/photo special]
