Seek Knowledge Even To China

Feature - "SEEK KNOWLEDGE EVEN TO CHINA", by Bambang Purwanto Jakarta, Dec 9 (Antara) - The proverb "seek knowledge even to China", which has been narrated since more than a thousand years ago, is still relevant today as China has shown rapid progress in development that can be learned, especially by such developing country as Indonesia. At the provincial level, such as Guangdong, the development looks so rapid with the infrastructure and skyscraper buildings are found in almost its all areas, and adequate roads are well constructed up to rural areas. One of the village that enjoys development in China is Zhusan whose majority of its residents working as farmers. Due to its rapid growth, the village can develop its tourism potentials that bring about four million tourists every year. The secretary of the Communist Party at the village level of Zhusan, Shen Fu, recently said that about 95 percent of the poor's houses have been modernized as the people get subsidies from the government to make the wall-concrete houses. "They are also given the opportunities to develop themselves in the business to work on the plantation of peanut, corn, rice, and potato," he said. To some ASEAN journalists who visited the province, on November 27, the consultant to the Press Division at the Foreign Office in Guangdong Province, Jiang Zheqin, said, "Seeing is believing. The saying is delivered when Jiang wanted to prove to the ASEAN reporters that China has made substantial changes. Jiang brought the journalists to observe results of the rapid development, ranging from those in the urban areas to those in rural areas in Guangdong province. During the journey from rural to urban areas, Jiang pointed out that the economic growth of Guangdong province can be seen with many high-rise buildings as well as rapid infrastructure development, such as the construction of double decker highways and adequate electricity supplies. Jiang invited the ASEAN member countries, including Indonesia, to build economic cooperation of mutual benefitS in the future. "We do have some issues, among others, the South China Sea issue. However, it is only a small problem that should be be solved, as there are bigger common interests, namely to build mutually beneficial cooperation," Jiang said. According to Jiang, Guangdong administration has organized conferences that resulted in more than 15 cooperation projects with the ASEAN countries. The cooperation shows the wish of both sides (ASEAN and Guangdong) to enhance relationship. Meanwhile, the Deputy Director of the Commercial Relations Division at the Commercial Department of Guangdong, Chen Yanling, admitted the importance of the ASEAN member countries as China`s trading partners whose markets are equally huge both in terms of population and business potentials. ASEAN (Association of Southeast Asian Nations) consists of Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines, Brunei Darussalam, Cambodia, Myanmar, Singapore, Thailand, Vietnam, and Laos. Chen explained that Guangdong has built more than 300 factories in ASEAN countries with a value of about US$ 1.40 billion, and contracted projects worth US$ 3.5 billion. With Indonesia, Chen said that Guangdong records its trade volume of about US$11.2 billion, or about 11 percent of the total volume of trade with the ASEAN countries, while the investment value reached US$400 million, or four percent of the total ASEAN's investment value. He added that the investment opportunities are wide open in the construction sector, property, automotive, and ship construction. Meanwhile, the head of the Economic Restructuring Division at the Development and Reform Commission of Guangdong, Li Xiangran, said that Guangdong is conducting economic reform measures, creating the neighborhood with friendly atmosphere, improving the infrastructure and simplifying the procedures for obtaining the investment permits. Invites Indonesia "We are doing these measures in order to increase the positive energy to invite investment from other countries, including those of ASEAN, and set up mutually beneficial cooperation," Li Xiangran said. He added that Guangdong invites Indonesia to invest in the province as there are not yet investors from this biggest ASEAN country that have invested in Guangdong. China and Indonesia have similar characteristics in terms demography, i.e. the two countries have extensive land and sea areas, have similar connectivity programs to link one area to another where infrastructure and information access still pose a problem. At the APEC (Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation ) forum meeting in China in 2014, President Xi Jinping proposed the Silk Road program, a trading path initiated by the Chinese. To support the program, China has also been prepared with a variety of facilities, such as the infrastructure and the high-tech facilities including the manufacture of rapid railway technology. According to the Assistant to the President of China Railway Construction Corporation, Zhou Lei, on the sidelines of the APEC meeting in China on November 11 to 12, 2014, the Indonesian President Joko Widodo, said his interest to cooperate with China on the development of rapid railway project for a Jakarta-Surabaya route. "The discussion of this project is still at an early stage and China will follow up on the plan. Currently we are waiting for the confirmation from the Indonesian government regarding its implementation," Zhou, who is also the chairman and general manager of the company, said. China Railway Construction Corporation Limited (CRCC), which was established on November 5, 2007 in Beijing, is now a giant company in the field of highway construction. On March 13, 2008, CRCC listed on the Shanghai Stock Exchange, and on November 13 in the same year listed at the Hong Kong Stock Exchange. In order to prepare the human resources that are expected to facilitate the communication between the people of both sides, China, with about 1.4 billion population, has a department of foreign languages, including the major of the Indonesian language at the University of Guangdong. The University of Guangdong cooperates with several universities in Indonesia, including the University of Gajah Mada, among others, by sending some students, such as Xiao Lixian (Jasmine) and Ge Rui to the university, located in Yogyakarta, to learn Indonesian. After completing their studies at the University of Gadjah Mada, Lixian and Ge Rui Xiao returned to the University of Guangdong to teach the Indonesian language. "There are more and more Chinese people want to learn the Indonesian language. Every year we receive at least 20 students for one class room. Previously the class only opened every four years,". Xia Lixian said.