Negotiation started in Maputo on May 31 and June 1 at the Ministry of Trade and Industry. (Photo: Direktorat Perundingan Bilateral Facebook)
Jakarta (VNA) -Indonesia and Mozambique have kicked off their first-ever negotiations for aPreferential Trade Agreement (PTA) following a joint commitment reached duringthe Indonesia-Africa Forum (IAF) in April this year, according to theIndonesian Trade Ministry.
ANTARA News quoted theministry’s bilateral trade negotiation director, Ni Made Ayu Marhini, as sayingthat the first round took place in Maputo on May 31 and June 1. Most articleshad been agreed on by the two countries.
"Our counterparts in Mozambiquehad welcomed our proposals on the agreement. As a result, the two parties havecompleted most articles of the PTA`s draft," she said in a statement onJune 5.
Marhini, who led the Indonesian delegation, said that when the negotiationswere completed by the year-end, Indonesia would have its first PTA with anAfrican nation. "After the IAF in Bali, we (the two countries) arecommitted to establish the PTA," she added.
The PTA was aimed at easingtariffs on products of both countries. Mozambique, she noted, is a potentialhub in Africa for Indonesia`s exports. There is huge potential for morecollaboration between the two countries, including in raw materials.
According to statistics, two-waytrade between Indonesia and Mozambique in the 2013-2017 period declined by23.75 percent, but Indonesia`s trade balance with Mozambique remains positive.
The total trade between thetwo countries increased by 82.2 percent from 44.5 million USD in 2016 to 54.1million USD in 2017.
Indonesian products thatcan be exported to Mozambique include soap, palm oil, cement, margarine andpaper. Indonesia can import nuts, ferro-alloys, raw tobacco and cotton fromMozambique.-VNA
