The government has asked its institutions to start conducting simulations in preparation for the introduction of a single time zone for the entire country, with the target date for the move being Independence Day on Aug. 17.
Edib Muslim, spokesman for the Indonesian Economic Development Committee (KP3EI), said that all of the ministries and institutions contacted responded in a positive way.
“The decision to change the time zones will only need a presidential decision and does not need approval from the [House of Representatives],” Edib said.
Edib announced that under the proposed plan, Indonesia would leave its triple-time zone division and become a single time zone at GMT+8.
Indonesia’s current westernmost time zone is GMT+7, its central is GMT+8 and its easternmost is GMT+9.
He said that the ministries and government institutions had each been asked to prepare “a simple model” for the conversion to the single time zone.
Edib said the country had experienced time zone changes in the past and if applied, the single time zone would be the fifth such change for the country.
“Since its independence, Indonesia has experienced this four times,” he said.
Indonesia gained independence on Aug. 17, 1945.
Records also show that during the Japanese occupation, between 1942 and 1945, Indonesia was turned into a single time zone matching Japan’s, at GMT+9. Under the Dutch colonial administration, Indonesia was divided into six time zones, with each being 30 minutes apart.
Edib said that turning the country into a single time zone would lead to savings and better economic productivity. “This would have its benefits in an economy that is slipping because of [rising] fuel prices,” he said.
Edib said the move to one time zone would eliminate problems arising from differences in business hours between the various zones in the country.
The KP3EI implements the Master Plan for the Acceleration and Expansion of Indonesia’s Economic Development (MP3EI), which aims to transform the national economy.
It is chaired by President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono. Hatta Rajasa , the chief economics minister, is the executive chairman.
All government ministries and agencies are fully supportive of a proposal to implement a single time zone for the whole of Indonesia, an official declared on Monday.
Luky Eko Wuryanto, secretary of the Indonesian Economic Development Committee (KP3EI), said the institutions recognized the economic benefits of the idea, which could go into force as soon as Independence Day on Aug. 17.
“They’re all very enthusiastic about the idea because of all the benefits that the public stand to gain from it,” said Luky, who is also a deputy for infrastructure and regional development.
He added that support for the plan was highlighted in a recent survey of the ministries and agencies carried out by Airlangga University in Surabaya.
“There was an earlier survey done by Airlangga, but it didn’t include all [government institutions],” he said.
Under the proposed plan, Indonesia would merge its three time zones into a single time zone at GMT+8.
The country’s current westernmost time zone is GMT+7, the central is GMT+8 and the easternmost is GMT+9.
Luky said the benefits from unifying the time zones included the fact that it would allow all 140 million Indonesians of productive age to work during the same hours.
He also said it would also make banking transactions easier and boost trade and competition with Singapore and Malaysia, both of which are at GMT+8.
KP3EI spokesman Edib Muslim had previously said that the decision to unify the time zones would only require a presidential decision and it would not need approval from the House of Representatives.
Source : Investor Daily
Bogor. The government wants to bring the entire archipelago, from Aceh to Papua, under a single time zone in a move it says would be a boon for business and increase productivity.
Indonesia is currently split into three time zones, with the first at GMT + 7.
Under the a proposed plan, residents across the archipelago would set their clocks to GMT+8, said Edib Muslim, spokesman for the Indonesian Economic Development Committee (KP3EI).
The committee is in charge of implementing the Master Plan for the Acceleration and Expansion of Indonesia’s Economic Development (MP3EI), which divides the country into economic corridors. It is chaired by President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono and the chief economics minister, Hatta Rajasa, is the executive chairman.
The move to one time zone is being considered to boost productivity, Edib said.
“A one-hour difference among the three time zones is not effective,” he said. “For example, transactions in Jakarta, located in the Western Indonesian Time zone, start at 9 a.m., and end at 5 p.m. This means there is effectively a four-hour window for trade between people in the Western time zone and the Eastern,” which is two hours ahead.
He said having just one time zone would eliminate problems like this, making business easier. “It will allow people living in the west, central and east of Indonesia to have the same standard time,” he said. “But we are still discussing how to put it in place.”
Hatta said a single time zone would be a financial blessing for the country.
“There are studies that say that with a single time zone, arrangements are more efficient and beneficial, so trillions [of rupiah] could be saved,” he said.
Speaking after a seminar on science and technology, Hatta said putting Indonesia under a single time zone at GMT+8 would also put country on the same time as several neighbors, such as Singapore and the Philippines.
“If our time zone could be made the same as our neighboring countries, then we could save substantially in terms of working hours, traffic and economic activity,” he said.
Still, he said he was unsure when the plan might actually be put into place.
The Indonesian Employers Association (Apindo) welcomed the plan.
“We really agree with this because this could save time and make it easier in computing the duration of trade distribution time,” Apindo chairman Sofyan Wanandi told BeritaSatu.com.
He also said the move would help improve the country’s economic competitiveness, at least when compared to other countries in the region.
Emmanuel Sungging Mumpuni, a space and solar system researchers from the National Institute of Aeronautics and Space (Lapan), said that although ideally a country as large as Indonesia should be divided into three time zones, having just one wouldn’t cause any problems.
He cited the example of China, which has adopted a single time zone for the entire country, at GMT+8.
The Indonesia Council of Ulema (MUI), which holds the highest authority on Islamic matters, said the move would not affect prayer times for Muslims. Islam has five prayers a day.
“Even being in the same time zone, Western Indonesian Time, there is already a difference in the prayer time for Jakarta and Medan, so there is no problem,” said Ma’ruf Amin, the head of the MUI fatwa department.
”Basically, prayers, breaking the fast and the start of the fasting day will take place at the same moment in the day, but the figure for the time would be different,” he said.
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