State-owned PT Telkom, which runs fixed and mobile operations in Indonesia, is planning to launch a number of MVNOs in the Middle East, targeting Indonesians living and travelling in the region. It’s also looking to team up with Silicon Valley venture capital (VC) firms to compete better on global digital services.

Arief Yahya, CEO, told The Jakarta Post that PT Telkom would partner with local mobile operators in the Middle East, through its PT Telekomunikasi Indonesia International (Telin) business, and set up MVNOs.

“Our principle is that we will always follow the money, the people, the traffic and the network,” he said.

He noted there were around one million Indonesians working in Saudi Arabia alone and another million that travelled to the country.

Arief expects Telin to earn revenue from workers’ remittances, “worth trillions of rupiah”. The total funds sent home by all Indonesian overseas workers amounted to $7.41 billion last year, reports the newspaper.

At a recent state plenary meeting, also reported on by The Jakarta Post, Arief named one VC partnership with Fenox Venture Capital and said other Silicon Valley tie-ups were on the way. The aim is to prepare “Telkom human capital” to compete globally in the digital business environment.

“We are committed to investing $200 million, which we intend to boost the national creative digital industry,” he said. “In the big picture, this will contribute to Indonesia’s economic growth.”

Arief said Telkom was eager to strengthen commitment on being a business incubator.