Indonesia seeks wider export access in six West African markets
Representatives of 44 West African companies met Indonesian businesses in South Tangerang as Jakarta pursues trade beyond its traditional markets.
Indonesia’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs is helping local businesses explore export opportunities in Senegal, Guinea, The Gambia, Sierra Leone, Mali and Côte d'Ivoire, as the government seeks to diversify its overseas markets.
The Indonesian Embassy in Dakar and the Indonesian Chamber of Commerce and Industry (Kadin Indonesia) organised a business networking event in South Tangerang, Banten, bringing representatives of 44 West African companies together with Indonesian businesses.
Aris Triyono, a senior adviser to the ministry’s director of African affairs, said West Africa offered trade opportunities with roughly 300 million consumers. He identified healthcare, agriculture and energy as areas of cooperation with Indonesia.
Triyono said state-owned pharmaceutical company PT Bio Farma and Senegal’s Institut Pasteur de Dakar have had a strategic partnership since 2019. Their work has focused mainly on capacity building, but they are now considering developing vaccines together.
Indonesia hopes to pursue preferential trade agreements with West African countries, Triyono said. It already has such an agreement with Mozambique and is negotiating one with Rwanda. Indonesian goods exported to West Africa include agricultural machinery, palm oil, tyres and rubber.
The outreach forms part of Jakarta’s effort to increase export value and diversify trade by developing markets beyond its established partners in Asia, Europe and North America.
