Financial Secretary Paul Chan Mo-po on Sunday underscored Indonesia’s vast opportunities, emphasizing Hong Kong’s commitment to deepening exchanges with the Southeast Asian nation in trade, finance, technology and education.

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Chan’s remarks followed his visit to Indonesia last week, where over 130 representatives from the special administrative region’s public and private sectors campaigned for the city’s strengths.

He said Indonesia, as the largest economy in the Association of Southeast Asian Nations, has experienced rapid economic growth in recent years, with an average annual growth rate of 4.2 percent in the past decade. Under its “Golden Indonesia 2045 Vision”, the nation is focusing on infrastructure development, digital economy growth, and green transformation, while attracting foreign investment to accelerate modernization and achieve leapfrog economic progress.

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“Indonesia is highly welcoming to investments from Hong Kong and the Chinese mainland,” Chan said in his weekly blog.

The SAR was Indonesia’s second-largest source of foreign investment: from 2018 to 2022, with over 8,400 investment projects in Indonesia originating from Hong Kong, involving total investment of $18.5 billion, according to the Hong Kong Trade Development Council.

Chan highlighted Hong Kong’s wide range of fundraising services for Indonesian enterprises, which can leverage connectivity arrangements to access both mainland and international capital through listings in Hong Kong. Infrastructure and green projects can secure financing via multiple channels, such as issuing bonds in various currencies, forming real-estate investment trusts, or securitizing projects. To address natural disaster risks from climate change, Indonesian enterprises can also utilize Hong Kong’s catastrophe bond products to distribute risks among global investors.

Additionally, innovation and technology are areas of particular interest. During this trip to Indonesia, more than 20 startup companies from Hong Kong’s two major startup incubators -- Cyberport and Hong Kong Science Park -- showcased their innovative products and services to the Indonesian market.

Among them, 10 startups from Hong Kong Science Park conducted over 50 business matching meetings in Indonesia, with more than 30 collaborations now in the negotiation stage, representing a potential business value of over $5 million, according to Chan.

Meanwhile, 14 startups from Cyberport are engaged in in-depth exchanges with the Indonesian government and business sectors. Notably, major local developers expressed strong interest in adopting Hong Kong’s smart city solutions for their development projects.

Chan also noted mutual interest in expanding youth exchanges and attracting more Indonesian students to study in Hong Kong. “These efforts will continue to strengthen economic, cultural, and interpersonal ties between the two regions in the future,” he added.