{
    "success": true,
    "data": {
        "id": 1857070,
        "msgid": "the-iceberg-of-logistics-and-the-usd-500-billion-ambition-at-the-d-8-halal-expo-1783943604",
        "date": "2026-07-13 18:20:00",
        "title": "The 'Iceberg' of Logistics and the USD 500 Billion Ambition at the D-8 Halal Expo",
        "author": "Erdy Nasrul",
        "source": "REPUBLIKA",
        "tags": "",
        "topic": "Economy",
        "summary": "As Indonesia chairs the D-8 Halal Expo aiming for USD 500 billion in intra-bloc trade by 2030, structural challenges threaten to undermine the ambition. High logistics costs, non-tariff barriers, and a lack of technological depth in downstream industries remain significant hurdles. Experts warn that without addressing these foundational issues, the expo risks becoming a ceremonial event rather than a catalyst for genuine economic integration.",
        "content": "<p>The D-8 Halal Expo Indonesia (HEI) 2026, held in Jakarta, presents a\nstrategic opportunity for Indonesia as it chairs the D-8 Organisation\nfor Economic Cooperation. Featuring business players from eight\ndeveloping nations\u2014including Malaysia, Turkey, Iran, and Nigeria\u2014the\nexpo carries the ambitious target of boosting intra-bloc trade to USD\n500 billion by 2030. However, beneath the surface of business matching\nsessions and exhibitions lies a series of structural \u2018icebergs\u2019\nthreatening to sink this ambition.<\/p>\n<p>Chief among these is Indonesia\u2019s crippling logistics costs, which\nstand at 14.29 percent of GDP, significantly higher than the ASEAN\naverage of 8-10 percent and OECD nations at 10-12 percent. For small and\nmedium enterprises (SMEs), the backbone of the halal sector,\ninternational shipping costs can often exceed the value of the goods\nthemselves, rendering them uncompetitive before they even reach foreign\nmarkets.<\/p>\n<p>Furthermore, while Indonesia aggressively promotes halal\ncertification and Mutual Recognition Agreements (MRA), non-tariff\nbarriers and fragmented cold chain infrastructure remain critical\nbottlenecks. D-8 Secretary-General Sohail Mahmood acknowledged the\nexpo\u2019s role as a catalyst, but industry observers note that without\nharmonising regulations and slashing logistics costs, the event may\nyield little more than ceremonial handshakes.<\/p>\n<p>A third structural irony lies in the downstream processing of natural\nresources. Indonesia has successfully pushed for the downstreaming of\ncommodities like nickel, with export values soaring from USD 3 billion\nto USD 34 billion in recent years. However, a study by the National\nResilience Institute (Lemhannas) indicates that technology transfer\nremains suboptimal. The country hosts the smelters but does not yet\ncontrol the high-value technology, meaning a significant portion of the\nadded value still flows abroad. Without mastering the technology and\nlogistics chain, Indonesia risks remaining a supplier of raw and\nsemi-finished materials rather than a dominant player in the global\nhalal value chain.<\/p>",
        "url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/the-iceberg-of-logistics-and-the-usd-500-billion-ambition-at-the-d-8-halal-expo-1783943604",
        "image": ""
    },
    "sponsor": "Okusi Associates",
    "sponsor_url": "https:\/\/okusiassociates.com"
}