Dubai July 2 2022: Abdullah bin Touq Al Marri, Minister of Economy, said that the UAE-Indonesia Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (CEPA) will enable the two nations to get bilateral trade up from US$3 billion annually in 2021 to in excess of US$10 billion annually within five years.
The minister made the remarks at a media briefing organised by the Ministry today at the Emirates News Agency (WAM) premises in Abu Dhabi, where he said the agreement aims to drive sustained Islamic finance growth, in addition to reinforcing the UAE’s position as a global economic hub. The media briefing occasioned a review of the agreement details in the presence of Dr. Thani bin Ahmed Al Zeyoudi, Minister of State for Foreign Trade, and Zulkifli Hasan, Minister of Trade of Indonesia, in addition to a number of officials from the two sides.
He explained that the UAE-Indonesia CEPA is tailored to drive trade in services for sectors including healthcare, transportation, education, telecommunications, construction, and Islamic finance, and will allow more investments in priority sectors, including logistics, renewable energy, manufacturing and the halal economy. “The partnership is conducive to drawing foreign investments from other countries interested in having access to the two nations’ markets,” the minister explained.
“We succeeded in reaching a balanced agreement that ensures a win-win partnership while protecting each other’s domestic industries,” the minister continued, noting that the global Islamic economy will amount to US$3.2 trillion by 2024, making it one of the fastest growing sectors in the global economy.
“Up to 83% of the UAE exports will benefit from the immediate elimination of customs tariffs between the two nations,” he remarked.
For his part, Zulkifli Hasan, Minister of Trade of Indonesia, expressed his appreciation to the UAE for the hospitality they showed, adding that the UAE-Indonesia trade relations are growing stronger, especially with the signing of the CEPA.
He went on to highlight the fact that the agreement is the first of its kind signed by Indonesia with one of the region’s countries, expressing his optimism that it will further enhance cooperation in service of their mutual interests, especially with the current challenges affecting the global economy.
