Dhaka, Jakarta seek closer economic coop
Bangladesh and Indonesia have reaffirmed their commitment to strengthening bilateral relations, with greater trade, investment, disaster management, tourism and regional economic integration emerging as key areas of cooperation.
The issues were discussed when Indonesian Ambassador to Bangladesh Listyowati paid a courtesy call on State Minister for Foreign Affairs Humaiun Kobir at his office in Dhaka on Wednesday.
During the meeting, the two sides discussed a wide range of areas of mutual interest, including trade and business, investment in the energy sector, disaster management, education and training, capacity building, tourism, cultural exchanges, people-to-people contacts, consular affairs and exchanges of high-level visits.
They also discussed cooperation on regional and global issues, reflecting the two countries’ shared interest in expanding their partnership beyond traditional bilateral areas.
State Minister Kobir urged Indonesia to increase imports of Bangladeshi products and services to deepen and diversify bilateral trade.
He also expressed Bangladesh’s readiness to move towards a Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (CEPA) with Indonesia, signalling Dhaka’s interest in establishing a broader and more structured framework for economic engagement.
The State Minister also requested Indonesia to ease visa processing for Bangladeshi nationals, particularly to facilitate tourism, cultural exchanges and greater people-to-people connectivity between the two countries.
In response, Ambassador Listyowati reaffirmed Indonesia’s support for diversifying Bangladesh’s exports to the Indonesian market, including pharmaceuticals, according to the Bangladesh Foreign Ministry.
Economic cooperation was also discussed in the context of energy-sector investment, with both sides exploring opportunities to expand business and investment ties.
The two countries also placed emphasis on cooperation in disaster management, an area of particular relevance given Bangladesh and Indonesia’s exposure to natural disasters.
Kobir expressed Bangladesh’s interest in strengthening bilateral cooperation in disaster management, while Ambassador Listyowati stressed the importance of exchanging knowledge, sharing best practices and strengthening capacity-building initiatives to reduce the impact of natural disasters.
The discussions also covered Bangladesh’s regional integration ambitions. Kobir sought Indonesia’s support for Bangladesh’s aspiration to become a Sectoral Dialogue Partner of ASEAN and to join the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP).
Ambassador Listyowati reaffirmed Indonesia’s continued support for the two initiatives, providing an important diplomatic dimension to the countries’ growing engagement.
The meeting concluded with both sides reaffirming their commitment to working closely at the bilateral, regional and international levels on issues of mutual interest.
The discussions indicate that Bangladesh-Indonesia relations are increasingly centred on expanding economic opportunities while strengthening cooperation in areas such as disaster resilience, connectivity, human resource development and regional integration.
