Indonesia, Kenya Sign Bilateral Agreements and Boost Investment
- Biro Pers Sekretariat Presiden.
Jakarta – Indonesia and Kenya on Monday have signed several bilateral agreements on renewable energy, health, and others following talks between Indonesian President Joko Widodo (Jokowi) and President of Kenya, William Ruto.
"It's an honor for me to visit Kenya. Indonesia and Kenya have a historical closeness since the Asian-African Conference in 1955 and the Non-Aligned Movement (NAM) in 1961. Kenya is a significant friend for Indonesia," President Widodo said.
In the meeting, President Widodo admitted to has discussed several things, such as the increase in trade which reached US$507 million in 2022 and needed to be expanded by exploring various other opportunities.
Presiden Joko Widodo (Jokowi) melakukan pertemuan bilateral dengan Presiden Kenya, William Ruto di State House, Nairobi, Republik Kenya pada Senin, 21 Agustus 2023.
- Biro Pers Sekretariat Presiden.
"Indonesia can be an entry point to Kenya, to ASEAN, and Kenya can be Indonesian entry point to sub saharan Africa. For this reason, I encourage preferential trade agreements to be formed immediately," he explained.
Then, Indonesia wants to increase investment in Kenya, especially in the energy sector. So, he asked for support so that Pertamina's investment with Geothermal Development Company worth US$1.5 billion, President Jokowi added.
"With Gunma Group, it can be immediately realized and expanded in the field of new renewable energy, as well as the need for a bilateral investment agreement between the two countries,"
President Jokowi said the cooperation between the BPOM of the two countries and the cooperation between Bio Farma and Biovacs with Generic Africa Ltd in the field of vaccines and pharmaceutical products, "I hope it can be expanded to other medicinal products and pharmaceutical products,"
After that, President has conveyed Indonesia's commitment through Indonesia assistance for Kenya in the fields of health, food security, disaster management and in the future will continue to be increased, especially for Kenya's priority sectors.
"In the current conditions of global uncertainty, it's time to strengthen the spirit of Bandung between countries in the global south, time for the world to listen to the voices and interests of developing countries, including the right to take a leap of development," he remarked.
"Your Excellency, this visit has resulted in concrete cooperation, three cooperation between governments, eight cooperation between state-owned enterprises and the private sector. We hope this can be realized soon. I invite President Ruthe to visit Indonesia," President Widodo concluded.
