BRI-backed project empowers over 7,000 surrounding businesses in Indonesia

The Indonesia Morowali Industrial Park (IMIP), a landmark project of cooperation between China and Indonesia under the Belt and Road Initiative framework, has emerged as a vital platform for driving regional economic growth, benefiting over 7,000 surrounding businesses.

Since its inception in 2013, IMIP — located in Central Sulawesi — has harnessed the region's abundant nickel reserves and built a modern industrial system spanning metallurgy, new energy, and advanced manufacturing, attracting an investment of some $35 billion from enterprises in China, Australia, Singapore, and Indonesia.

With its expanding influence, the park is playing a key role in upgrading the local industrial structure and has generated broad spillover effects, supporting the growth of micro, small, and medium-sized enterprises (MSMEs) and invigorating the local community economy.

As a model of industrial cooperation between China and Indonesia, IMIP has built a modern industrial system that spans metallurgy, new energy, and advanced manufacturing.

In the early morning streets of Bahodopi, Central Sulawesi, 53-year-old Abdullah packs freshly cooked meals to deliver to construction sites in the IMIP. His kitchen business, "Mr Dura's Kitchen," now sells over 300 meals daily and employs 18 people. "The park has brought people and opportunities. We plan to hire more staff," he said.

Abdullah moved to Bahodopi five years ago from South Sulawesi, seizing the opportunity presented by the influx of people driven by the park's development. His story exemplifies the broader ripple effect of IMIP's economic engine.