REPUBLIKA.CO.ID, BEIJING -- Local officials from the government of Ternate, Maluku, recently visited China to promote investment in the marine sector, including the tuna and seaweed industry.

Head of Industry and Trade Department of Ternate City Abdullah M Saleh said during a meeting with Secretary General of ASEAN-China Center (ACC) Ma Mingqiang and some Chinese businessman in Beijing on Tuesday night (Oct 29), that the tuna and seaweed industry in Ternate are still operating as small scale businesses.

"Therefore, we need investment to build tuna and seaweed processing factories and give them added-values that will increase their competitiveness in export markets," he said.

According to data from the Ternate Industry and Trade Department, tuna production in Ternate reached 4,500 ton per year, but its export range remains mired in domestic markets, such as sending fish to Manado, North Sulawesi.

"In fact, we still export our tuna as raw fish, so the price is lower than if we could export processed tuna, such as canned tuna, for an example. That's why we need investors to build our tuna industry in order to be more effective and efficient," said Saleh.

The situation is similar with seaweed production in Ternate, Saleh added, where more power plants are needed to provide power for an efficient marine industries processing facilities.

"However, we export our seaweed to Brazil, but still use manual processing that is ineffective and inefficient," he said.

Meanwhile, ACC Secretary General Ma Mingqian has noted the investment potentials offered by Ternate City and will seek credible investors to support the marine industry?s development and other economic potentials owned by this region.

China Institute of Water Resources and Hydro-power Research's Managing Director Yanyu Chen said his organization is interested in investing in Ternate by building a water power plant, irrigation and sea water distillation for clean water.

"Almost 90 percent of the Ternate region is water, which is a potential source of energy to be used in many sectors, such as clean water, electricity, agriculture, and industry," he said.

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