Commentary: Language barriers block businesses off from Indonesia

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Regulations mandating the use of Bahasa Indonesia in business are souring the appetite of international investors, says an observer.

CANBERRA: For the past decade, the Indonesian government has stepped up efforts to mandate the use of the Indonesian language in all aspects of life.

While no sanctions are specified for not complying, this law created risks. Two court proceedings in 2013 and 2017 quoted Law No 24/2009 to dispute the validity of English-only contracts between Indonesian companies and their foreign suppliers. FILE PHOTO: Indonesian President Joko Widodo attends an ASEAN leaders summit in Bangkok, Thailand, November 3, 2019. REUTERS/Soe Zeya Tun/File Photo

The ease of communication logically promotes business links, but to what extent might restricting investors’ language options prove detrimental to FDI? Furthermore, studies suggest Asian multinational enterprises prefer using their own language in headquarter-subsidiary interactions. They often place their own nationals as expatriates in overseas subsidiaries to minimise communication errors and maintain a degree of control.

Indonesian policymakers can learn from the Vietnamese example. Investors care about communication barriers so restricting their linguistic choice simply erects another wall which investors must then overcome.

Source: News Formal (newsformal.com)

 

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