"We are in the stage of implementing and discussing to realize the cooperation potential to increase trade between the two countries," the ministry's Director for Africa Dewi Justicia Meidiwaty stated at the Seminar on 45 Years of Relations between Indonesia and Kenya in Banten, Thursday.
She noted that although bilateral relations between Indonesia and Kenya had only been established in 1979, the two countries already had strong relations since the Asian-African Conference in Bandung in 1955. However, trade relations between the two are still limited.
"Even though the trade trend between the two countries grew by 13.4 percent from 2019 to 2023, there are still many things that must be done to increase our cooperation," she remarked.
According to Meidiwaty, the PTA is one of the tools to increase trade, followed by the provision of a legal framework to protect investment, both from Indonesia and Kenya, as well as to ensure stability and certainty for investors.
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She expressed optimism that those efforts would not only encourage more Indonesian companies to invest in Kenya and vice versa but also strengthen confidence for sustainable long-term economic partnerships.
Kenyan Ambassador to Indonesia Galma Mukhe Boru stated that investment from Indonesia is one of the areas that must be increased, as it is currently the largest economy in Southeast Asia.
To this end, the Government of Kenya is looking forward to cooperating with Indonesia to bring more investment into Kenya.
The ambassador emphasized that Kenya and Indonesia have mutually depended on and helped one another beyond the Bandung Conference and until this day, especially when countries in the Northern Hemisphere still dominate the world.
He further affirmed that as part of the Global South, Indonesia and Kenya need to collaborate to support one another in the context of the UN Security Council Reform, reform of the unfair international financial architecture, financing for sustainable development goals, and climate finance.
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Translator: Kuntum Khaira, Raka Adji
Editor: Yuni Arisandy Sinaga
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