President Prabowo Subianto held a bilateral meeting with Egyptian President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi at the Al Ittihadiya Presidential Palace in Cairo on Wednesday, December 18, local time. 

 

The two leaders discussed various strategic issues, including trade, technology, education, and reaffirming their stance in support of Palestine amidst the armed conflict in the Middle East. 

 

Prabowo emphasized that Egypt is a historical and international political ally of Indonesia. He recalled the era when Egypt and Indonesia led the Non-Aligned Movement under President Gamal Abdel Nasser and President Soekarno. 

 

Prabowo and Abdel Fattah agreed to enhance trade cooperation within the Suez Canal Economic Zone, which is part of the Special Economic Zone (SEZ). 

 

This economic zone serves as a strategic platform to promote export commodities. The Suez Canal is widely recognized as a gateway for global trade, connecting Europe, Asia, and Africa. 

 

Prabowo highlighted Indonesia’s interest in developing palm oil processing facilities in Egypt. To facilitate this, a logistics hub is needed to streamline the distribution of goods and the export-import of Indonesian products to the global market through Egypt. 

 

"Indonesia also hopes to establish a preferential trade agreement with Egypt so that our cooperation can be further strengthened," said Prabowo during a joint press statement with Egyptian President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi following their meeting. 

 

El-Sisi welcomed Indonesia's proposal to establish a logistics zone in the Suez Canal Economic Zone. He noted that this initiative could boost trade cooperation between Egypt and Indonesia, which currently remains below USD 1 billion. 

 

"This zone will involve both public and private companies from both countries," stated El-Sisi. 

 

The former Commander-in-Chief of the Egyptian Armed Forces mentioned that Indonesia and Egypt had agreed to form a joint committee directly accountable to the leaders of the two nations to follow up on the commitments discussed. 

 

"In addition, there will be reciprocal visits by delegations from both countries to monitor the progress of this cooperation," said Abdel Fattah. 

 

Trade Cooperation in the Palm Oil Sector 

 

Previously, the Ministry of Trade had been preparing for further trade collaboration between Indonesia and Egypt in the palm oil sector. 

 

Deputy Minister of Trade Jerry Sambuaga stated that the Egyptian vegetable oil processing and distribution company Savco had expressed its interest in becoming the agent of Sinar Mas in Egypt.

 

Savco also plans to import bulk palm oil from Indonesia at a volume of 5,000 tons per month to be shipped to the Adabya Port. 

 

"The Indonesian government in Egypt will soon facilitate collaboration between Savco and one of Indonesia's largest palm oil producers," Jerry said in a press release on Monday, April 29. 

 

Jerry noted that the largest exports of palm oil commodities to Egypt are refined, bleached, and deodorized (RBD) products. RBD refers to crude palm oil that has been refined, bleached, and deodorized. 

 

RBD products contribute 31% of Indonesia’s total export value to Egypt. The export value of RBD to Egypt reaches USD 1.31 billion. 

 

Original article here
This article is published in partnership with Katadata