REPUBLIKA.CO.ID, JAKARTA -- President Joko Widodo (Jokowi) has invited the participants of the World Economic Forum on East Asia (WEFEA), particularly businessmen, to invest in Indonesia.

"After looking at opportunities here for a week, please invest. If you have any problem, call me," President Jokowi stated at the opening ceremony of the 24th WEFEA here Monday (21/4).

The President noted that the world is currently in fundamental transition and market conditions are challenging.

"But, there must be opportunities. Challenges we face are our opportunities," Jokowi told over 700 businessmen, government, and civil society leaders attending the opening session of the 24th WEFEA.

He revealed that ever since he visited China and Japan recently and met with the leaders of the two countries, he has been optimistic that the country will continue to grow further.

Jokowi also told the WEFEA participants that he goes on kampongs every month to talk to local residents.

"Change will create winners and losers, but there can be no progress without change. There can be no gain without pain. My people tell me every week and every month, please change our country," he added.

"We have to reinvent our economies; we have to reinvent our societies," he stressed.

Indonesia must undergo crucial restructuring, Jokowi remarked.

"Today, we must shift from consumption to production, from consumption to investment in our infrastructure, in our industry, and most importantly, in our human capital, which is the most precious resource of the 21st century," he pointed out.

Marking a return to Indonesia after three years, the 24th WEFEA is being organized in Jakarta from April 19-21, 2015.

The theme of WEFEA 2015 is "Anchoring Trust in East Asia's Regionalism." Meanwhile, ASEAN is set to launch the ASEAN Economic Community, a common-market initiative, at the end of the year.

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