Heaptalk, Jakarta – Indonesia strengthens its bilateral and trade relationship with Canada by signing the completion of the Indonesia-Canada Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (CEPA) joint statemet in Jakarta (12/02). Performing this breakthrough, Indonesia expects to broaden its market to North America through Canada.
“Today, we signed the Indonesia-Canada CEPA joint statement, and we hope we can sign the agreement in the midst of 2024 and implement it in 2026. We will have multiple cooperations spanning products and services, and also investment. But we also hope that we can enter North America’s market through Canada, therefore trade barriers can be reduced through CEPA agreement,” stated Indonesia’s Trade Minister Budi Santoso during the press conference in Hotel Mulia, Jakarta (12/03).
Budi also explained that Indonesia-Canada CEPA will enable Indonesia to obtain liberalization of up to 89.5% of the total import duty rate with the trade value worth USD1.4 million.
“Some commodities will also obtain zero import duties; thus, our products can easily enter Canada’s market. For example, footwear, this industry will obtain 0% import duty,” stated Budi Santoso.
The Indonesian Trade minister also elaborated commodities that will be prioritize to obtain market access includes textiles, pulp and paper industry, wood, processed food, swift’s nest, and palm oil industry.
Meanwhile, the bilateral cooperation will also guarantee preferential treatment for Indonesian service providers that run their businesses in particular industries, including telco, construction, tourism, and transportation. Regarding the investment commitment, the measure will open investment access to numerous sectors, such as manufacturing, mining, energy infrastructure, agriculture, fisheries, and forestry.
Indonesia-Canada CEPA also includes other commitments including copyright, good governance, e-commerce, business competitiveness, MSEs, women’s economic empowerment, sustainability, and human resources.
Canada’s Minister of Export Promotion, International Trade and Economic Development, Mary Ng, stated, “This is the appropriate time for Canadian businesses and investors to expand our reach to SEA’s largest economic countries. On the other hand, this is the golden moment for Indonesian investors and businesses to broaden their market to North America.”
