Indonesia Should Address Localization Measures, ITI Says

Indonesia will need to address certain localization practices, especially in the information and communications technology (ICT) sector, to join the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP), Information Technology Industry Council (ITI) Global Policy Director Ed Brzytwa said in a blog post Wednesday. Indonesian President Joko Widodo met with President Barack Obama Monday and expressed his interest in joining the TPP. Brzytwa said Indonesia tends to favor local companies and industries over foreign competitors in the ICT space and will need to change certain practices, including a new data localization requirement, to join the TPP. "The data localization requirement will impose higher costs on local companies, especially on small and medium sized enterprises," wrote Brzytwa. "It will also raise costs for U.S.-headquartered companies operating in Indonesia, as well as Indonesian businesses and consumers, undermining Indonesia’s global and regional competitiveness." ITI would "strongly support" including an affirmative statement in Indonesia's Digital Economy 2020 vision that it will avoid and roll back all forced localization measures, Brzytwa said. ITI will engage with Indonesian officials to find more trade and investment friendly approaches in order to meet its objectives, he said.