Chairman of the Indonesian Chamber of Commerce and Industry (Kadin), Arsjad Rasjid invites Indonesian and United Arab Emirates (UAE) businesses to increase economic cooperation.

Arsjad Rasjid said Indonesia and the UAE are two economic powers in their respective regions, so the comprehensive economic partnership between Indonesia and the UAE (CEPA) will open up more opportunities.

"The framework itself is there, now it's just time to act," Mr Rasjid said in a video address to the Indonesia-UAE Economic Forum in Jakarta, Thursday (21/9/2023).

Arsjad said the great potential of Indonesia and the UAE's investment partnership was in line with the good relations between the two heads of state. Arsjad said President Joko Widodo (Jokowi) and UAE President Mohammed Bin Zayed Al Nahyan (MBZ) have the same commitment in encouraging increased cooperation between Indonesia and the UAE.

According to him, Indonesia and the UAE can collaborate with each other in facing the current global economic situation, including finding solutions related to energy and food supply chains.

"I call on the business world in both countries to encourage partnerships. It is also interesting to see the involvement of local leaders in bridging more investments," he said.

Arsjad said that this cooperation is not only beneficial for Indonesia, but also encourages growth for the Southeast Asian region. Arsjad hopes that there will be real implementation in the form of cooperation from the discussion forum.

"The increasing role of Southeast Asia as the epicentre of global growth certainly requires more business support, especially with partners outside the region, including the UAE. I support more business deals formed from today's forum activities," Arsjad said.

UAE Ambassador to Indonesia and Timor Leste Abdullah Salem Aldhaheri revealed that the forum was held three weeks after the entry into force of the UAE-Indonesia Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (CEPA) on 1 September 2023.

According to Abdullah, the CEPA is a promising step forward to realise a new era of trade and investment cooperation between the two countries.

"The UAE-Indonesia CEPA eliminates or reduces tariffs on a large number of goods, and removes unnecessary trade barriers," he said.

In addition, the UAE-Indonesia CEPA also establishes investment pathways in priority sectors such as logistics, energy, food production, fintech, e-commerce, and travel and tourism. "The UAE provides many potential and diversified investment opportunities. The UAE is a reliable investment partner," he concluded.