Indonesia’s Private Sector

The composition of the private sector and the problems today still reflect the legacy of the colonial system. Before World War II the modem sector was dominated by the Dutch companies, with a number of medium-scale Chinese companies on the ascendancy. The Dutch companies were engaged in plantation, mining, intemational trade, banking, shipping, manufacturing, construction, etc. Ma y Chinese companies, diversifying out of trade, entered medium-scale manufacturing of consumer goods; their plants are often located in provincial towns in Java. Some Chinese business houses, however, also ventured in plantations, such as of sugar, tea and coffee.