Aceh's Dek Fadh promotes province's potential to Hangzhou Chamber

Aceh Deputy Governor Fadhlullah "Dek Fadh" promoted Aceh's investment potential of Aceh to investors from the Hangzhou Chamber of Commerce during a meeting at the Deputy Governor's Official Residence hall on May 1, 2025. The meeting was also attended by the Economic and Development Assistant of the Aceh Regional Secretary Zulkifli, and several heads of related regional government offices.

"Aceh's territory spans more than 58,000 square kilometers (km²) and is surrounded by sea, leading us to have a very largeour marine and fisheries potential. However, marine products [from Aceh] are still being exported through Medan. This is one of our limitations," he said.

Dek Fadh invited Hangzhou investors to look into the sector and build a port that could export products from said sector directly from Aceh. He also highlighted Aceh's plantation sector potential.

"We have 70 palm oil mills, but all CPO (crude palm oil) is sent to North Sumatra because Aceh does not have a refinery. As a result, the roads are damaged [due to the trucking of CPO to North Sumatra's ports] and the increased economic value is gained by neighboring provinces," explained Dek Fadh.

For the mining sector, western and southern Aceh have iron ore, gold, galena, tin, and copper. Meanwhile, the province's central region is known for its gold reserves.

“The energy sector is also promising. We have [hydro power potential from] rivers and waterfalls, as well as geothermal potential. With all those [advantages], Aceh should not be among the poorest areas in Sumatra,” he stated.

However, the long history of conflict for 32 years and the tsunami disaster affected public perception of Aceh.

“Aceh is still stuck with the image of a conflict area. In fact, the crime rate in Aceh is among the lowest in Indonesia,” added Dek Fadh.

He emphasized that now is the right moment to invest in Aceh.

“Our governor (Muzakir Manaf) is in Gerindra (Great Indonesia Movement) Party's Advisory Board, I am myself the Gerindra Aceh Chair, and our President is the the Gerindra Party chair. This synergy is a great opportunity for investors,” Dek Fadh said.

 “The people of Aceh are friendly and polite. We guarantee that Aceh is safe and comfortable. Please explore and invest, we are ready to provide full support,” he concluded.

Meanwhile, Hangzhou Chamber of Commerce Indonesia Secretary General Lucita admitted that investors from Hangzhou were initially hesitant to come to Aceh.

“I have been to Aceh before, including Sabang. In my opinion, Aceh is an unpolished diamond. I convinced my colleagues that Aceh has great potential, and this is the right time to come and invest,” she divulged.

Lucita said that her colleague Adi Laweung and herself brought dozens of Acehnese residents to attend food security training in Serang City, Banten province.

“Over time, I fell more and more in love with Aceh. So I brought my investor friends from Hangzhou,” she said.

Lucita was present at the meeting with Wang, the owner of a conglomerate that controls 23 companies in Hangzhou.

“Mr. Wang is interested in marine products such as squid, lobster, and sea cucumber. If there is a direct export port from Aceh, it would be very profitable,” she noted.

Lucita revealed that there are already 10 companies ready to invest in Aceh’s fisheries sector. In addition, the agribusiness sector is also attracting investor interest.

“Mr. Wang hopes that there will be an official agreement between the Aceh Government and the Hangzhou Chamber so that he can convey it directly to business partners in China,” she concluded.