"As of October 2017, Indonesia`s non-oil and gas exports amounted to more than US$779 million. Compared with the same period in the previous year, Indonesia`s non-oil and gas exports to West Africa have increased $134 million," Harry Purwanto, Indonesian Ambassador to Nigeria, said in a written statement received by ANTARA in Bengkulu from the Indonesian Embassy in Abuja, Thursday.
The 11 countries are Benin, Burkina Faso, Gabon, Ghana, Cameroon, Congo, Liberia, Niger, Nigeria, Sao Tome and Principe, and Togo.
In addition to the number of exports, Purwanto noted that Indonesia`s increasing trade with West Africa was also evident from the growing number of businesses between Indonesian and West African businessmen.
"Not only in conventional products such as food or medicine, we have also been exploring the sales of Indonesia`s strategic industrial products such as trains, airplanes, military equipment and the mining sector," he observed.
Some 47 Indonesian companies already have a representative office or a major distributor in the city of Lagos, Nigeria, he highlighted.
"Indonesian products are known in the local community for their quality and affordable prices, making it very attractive to the African market," he emphasized.
In December 2017, PT KAI (railway firm) and PT Timah (tin mining firm) signed a partnership with a local partner in Nigeria for a potential cooperation value of approximately $100 million .
"The economic potential in the 11 countries accredited to the Indonesian Embassy in Abuja is quite large. With a total population of some 300 million and accumulated gross domestic product of some $650 billion, the West African region can be relied upon to become a non-traditional Indonesian market," he underlined.
He added that the potential was also reinforced with the stability of economic growth and the increasingly healthy practices of democracy in the region.
Therefore, Purwanto has asked for the support of all parties, both government and private, to not hesitate in doing business with Africa, and invited Indonesian businessmen to take advantage of the current momentum, before West Africa is flooded with products from other countries.
(A014/INE)
EDITED BY INE
(T.A014/B/KR-BSR/F001)
Reporter: antara
Editor: Heru Purwanto
Copyright © ANTARA 2017
