Indonesia and Timor-Leste sign treaty on investment cooperation
The pact follows negotiations launched in November 2024 and covers investor protection, simpler procedures and investment promotion.
A treaty intended to encourage investment between Indonesia and Timor-Leste has been signed in Jakarta, according to Indonesia's Ministry of Investment and Downstreaming. The two governments also committed to exchanging investment information and encouraging partnerships between their businesses.
Indonesian Investment and Downstreaming Minister Rosan Perkasa Roeslani signed alongside Francisco Kalbuadi Lay, Timor-Leste's Deputy Prime Minister and Coordinating Minister for Economic Affairs. Rosan said the agreement would provide legal and institutional arrangements for closer policy coordination, simpler regulations and faster investment.
The pact has three main elements: promoting investment to support a sustainable business environment, making investment procedures more efficient and transparent, and giving investors fair treatment and legal certainty. The signing carries forward a 2023 commitment; negotiations opened in November 2024 and ended following a legal review in August 2025.
Ministry figures put the number of Indonesian private companies with investments in Timor-Leste at about 120. Indonesian state-owned businesses are also active there, operating companies and managing strategic infrastructure projects in sectors including banking, telecommunications, energy and construction.
The treaty is expected to bring investment into manufacturing, infrastructure, logistics, renewable energy, real estate, digital technology and downstream processing of natural resources. Lay said it would reinforce the countries' longstanding relationship, with the aim of delivering direct benefits to people through closer economic cooperation.
