Joko ‘Jokowi’ Widodo and Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, President of Brazil will be meeting with Félix Tshisekedi, the President of Congo in Kinshasa, Congo in August 2023 to spearhead the Global South Cooperation plan on tropical forest industry and processing of critical minerals.
The Global South Cooperation
Luhut Binsar Pandjaitan, Coordinating Minister for Maritime and Investment Affairs explained that the Global South Cooperation will become some sort of ‘cartel’ that oversees the economic policies of developing countries to process critical minerals and forestry products.
“We must enjoy the added value of the critical minerals, otherwise when will we become a developed country [?],” said Luhut.
As part of the continuation of Global South Cooperation, Indonesia will meet up with Congo and Brazil in Bandung, in October 2023 to capitalize on the tropical forest industry and the processing of critical minerals.
“The President will meet with President Tshisekedi and President da Silva, they will handle the cooperation of the three heads of state,” said Luhut on June 9, 2023.
As many as 12 countries from the African Continent, and eight countries from South America is scheduled to be present to discuss the potential of the two sectors. Luhut hoped that the meeting will repeat the spirit of Asia-Africa in 1955.
“This will repeat the Asian-African spirit that happened in 55,” said Pandjaitan.
The downstreaming program is believed to be able to make Indonesia as one of the high-income countries for the next 20 years.
Focus on downstream industry
Indonesia will work specifically with Brazil and Congo as pioneers for industrial management of tropical forests and critical minerals, to devise an important strategy for developing countries to become developed countries.
According to Luhut, developing countries should be able to enjoy the added value of mineral processing or tropical forest industries.
These commodities include nickel, bauxite, tin, copper and silica. In addition, the government will encourage downstream development in the manufacture of fiberglass and optical fiber, which is used as materials in developing internet connectivity.
