Indonesia, Malaysia, and Thailand Strengthen Regional Cooperation to Push for Palm Oil MoU Signing

The Ministry of Agriculture hosted the 4th Project Implementation Team (PIT) Palm Oil Cooperation (POC) Meeting as part of the 19th Indonesia-Malaysia-Thailand Growth Triangle (IMT-GT) Working Group on Agriculture and Agribusiness (WGAA) Meeting. The event was supported by the Plantation Fund Management Agency (BPDP) and the state-owned plantation holding company PTPN III, along with its subsidiaries PT Perkebunan Nusantara IV (PTPN IV) and PT Kawasan Industri Nusantara (KINRA).

Head of the Indonesian Delegation, Hendratmojo Bagus Hudoro, stated that the support reflects synergy between the government and state-owned enterprises in strengthening economic diplomacy and promoting a sustainable and competitive palm oil industry. He described the meeting as a strategic momentum for Indonesia, Malaysia, and Thailand to enhance synergy in developing a sustainable, inclusive, and competitive palm oil sector.

As the world’s three main palm oil producers, the three countries collectively contribute around 87 percent of global palm oil supply, with Indonesia as the largest producer, followed by Malaysia and Thailand. This strategic position makes cooperation under the IMT-GT framework increasingly important in addressing global challenges, including productivity improvement, sustainability, smallholder empowerment, and strengthening international market access.

Hendratmojo expressed appreciation for the presence of all delegations and stressed the need to continuously strengthen trilateral cooperation to navigate international trade dynamics, sustainability demands, and climate change challenges. He noted that through the IMT-GT platform, the three countries are expected to enhance collaboration in productivity improvement, downstream industry development, smallholder empowerment, innovation, and the harmonisation of various initiatives supporting sustainable palm oil industry development.

BPDP representative Normansyah Syahrudin welcomed the outcomes of the meeting and expressed hope that the resulting recommendations would be followed up with concrete programmes to support palm oil smallholder empowerment.