REPUBLIKA.CO.ID, BATAM - The Bank of Indonesia encourages entrepreneurs and the Indonesian community to use the rupiah (IDR) currency ahead of the establishment of the ASEAN Economic Community (AEC) in 2015.

"Bank of Indonesia has asked all entrepreneurs and the Indonesian community to use the rupiah currency in every transaction across the nation, as the bank feared that other countries will be one step ahead of Indonesia," said the Bank of Indonesias Deputy Governor Ronald Waas, on Wednesday. 

The statement was made at a national seminar with the theme "Rupiah as a Symbol of National Integrity and the Obligation of Rupiah Currency in the Indonesian Soil," held in Batam.

Indonesia as a large market in the AEC should encourage its currency to boost the international markets trust and prestige among foreign countries, Ronald added. The high demand for foreign currency will trigger the depreciation of the rupiah, and increasing inflation will also lower Indonesian product competitiveness.

According to Law No. 7 of 2011 on the mandate, the rupiah currency should be used in any transaction related to payment, settlement of other obligations that must be met with money, and/or other financial transactions that are carried out in the country.

Unfortunately, the law has not been enforced with a government regulation, which can describe the law in detail, Ronald said.

The AEC is expected to achieve the goal of regional economic integration by 2015. The community is envisaged as a single market and production base, a highly competitive economic region, a region of equitable economic development, and a region fully integrated into the global economy.

The ASEAN leaders adopted the ASEAN Economic Blueprint at the 13th ASEAN Summit on November 20, 2007, in Singapore to serve as a coherent master plan guiding the establishment of the AEC in 2015.

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