Indonesia, Egypt Push For Economic Partnership Agreement, Joint Investment Fund
By Nik Nurfaqih Nik Wil
JAKARTA, Oct 11 (Bernama) -- Indonesia and Egypt are pushing for an Economic Partnership Agreement (EPA) and the establishment of a joint investment fund to strengthen bilateral trade and investment cooperation.
Indonesian President Prabowo Subianto said the initiatives were discussed during bilateral talks with Egyptian President Abdel Fattah El-Sisi in Jakarta on Sunday.
“We have also agreed to strengthen cooperation in various fields, particularly trade and investment, and to that end, we have encouraged the establishment of an EPA between Indonesia and Egypt,” he said in a joint press conference following the meeting.
El-Sisi arrived in Jakarta on Saturday for a two-day state visit to Indonesia, during which he held bilateral talks with Prabowo at Merdeka Palace on Sunday, followed by a joint press statement.
Prabowo also welcomed an initiative by investment institutions from both countries to establish a joint investment fund to encourage investment in strategic projects.
Indonesia had earlier proposed negotiations on preferential and free trade agreements with Egypt, with Trade Minister Budi Santoso raising the matter during talks with his Egyptian counterpart in Jaipur, India on Aug 7, according to a statement issued by the Indonesian Trade Ministry on the same day.
In the same statement, the ministry reported that bilateral trade reached US$2.38 billion (US$1=RM4.08) in 2025, comprising US$1.94 billion in Indonesian exports and US$439.8 million in imports, giving Indonesia a trade surplus of about US$1.5 billion.
Trade between the two countries totalled US$1.74 billion in the first half of 2026, comprising US$1.09 billion in Indonesian exports and US$647.7 million in imports from Egypt, according to the ministry's figures.
Prabowo said El-Sisi's state visit also resulted in several bilateral agreements covering maritime affairs and fisheries, statistics, investment, defence industry cooperation, trade and economic cooperation, as well as an action plan to advance their strategic partnership.
Indonesia and Egypt elevated their bilateral relations to a strategic partnership during Prabowo's visit to Cairo in April 2025, while both leaders agreed on Sunday to strengthen regular high-level consultations and existing bilateral mechanisms to enhance strategic dialogue and coordination.
-- BERNAMA