Ministry of Trade Strengthens Trade through Bilateral Meetings at WTO
Indonesia’s Ministry of Trade (Kemendag) stated that the Indonesian delegation held a series of bilateral meetings with several countries to discuss trade and investment relations during the 14th World Trade Organization (WTO) Ministerial Conference (KTM) on 26-29 March 2026 in Yaounde, Cameroon.
Johni Martha, Special Staff for International Relations at Kemendag and leader of the Indonesian delegation, said the meetings aimed to share views on crucial issues and enhance cooperation.
“We held bilateral meetings with Germany, Sweden, Saudi Arabia, the European Union (EU), and the Netherlands on the sidelines of the 14th WTO KTM to share perspectives on the crucial issues discussed at the 14th KTM and to strengthen bilateral trade cooperation,” Johni stated in Jakarta on Monday.
He conveyed that those countries share the same view on the importance of the WTO and the need for reforms to make it more relevant in the current global situation.
In several of those bilateral meetings, Johni was accompanied by Deputy Permanent Representative of Indonesia II to Geneva/Ambassador of Indonesia to the WTO, Nur Rahman Setyoko, and Director of World Trade Organization Negotiations at the Ministry of Trade, Dina Kurniasari.
In addition to discussing 14th WTO KTM issues, the meetings served as an opportunity to enhance mutually beneficial trade and investment cooperation.
With the EU, Netherlands, Sweden, and Germany, both sides agreed to utilise the Indonesia-European Union Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (I-EU CEPA) mechanism to discuss issues and efforts to improve trade relations. Those countries support accelerating the implementation process of the I-EU CEPA.
Furthermore, Johni said Indonesia and those countries also agreed that business actors in each country should enhance cooperation among business actors. This can be done through business matching or other trade promotions.
With Saudi Arabia, both countries agreed to push for the prompt conclusion of negotiations on the Indonesia-Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) CEPA.
In particular, the Swedish delegation also conveyed plans for an agenda by Crown Princess Victoria of Sweden to visit Jakarta in September 2026 to enhance Indonesia-Sweden investment and trade.
Additionally, the German delegation urged that the 2nd Meeting of the Indonesia-Germany Joint Economic and Investment Committee (JEIC) be held at the earliest opportunity.