Official Visit of YAB Dato’ Seri Anwar Ibrahim, Prime Minister of Malaysia to the Republic of Indonesia

YAB Dato’ Seri Anwar Ibrahim, the Prime Minister of Malaysia, made his first official visit to Indonesia on 8 – 9 January 2023 to strengthen bilateral ties between both countries. YAB Dato’ Seri Anwar Ibrahim and the President of Indonesia, Joko Widodo, discussed areas of mutual national interest including economic cooperation, investment opportunities and strategies to overcome regional challenges, such as the European Union (EU) discrimination against palm oil imports from Indonesia and Malaysia.

During his visit, YAB Dato’ Seri Anwar Ibrahim witnessed the signing of nine Memorandums of Understanding (MOU) to mark potential partnerships between the Malaysian and Indonesian private sectors in the areas of engineering and shipbuilding, exports and imports financing, battery development and green energy projects. The Prime Minister also saw the handover of 11 letters of interest (LOI) by Malaysian companies to the Head of the Nusantara Capital City Authority, Bambang Susantono, registering their interest to participate in the development of the new Capital City of Nusantara. These companies offered their expertise in the manufacturing industry, property development, professional services such as engineering consultancy, sustainable energy and utility services as well as digital services.

The Ministry of International Trade and Industry (MITI), led by the MITI Minister, YB Senator Tengku Datuk Seri Utama Zafrul Tengku Abdul Aziz, along with the Malaysian Investment Development Authority (MIDA) and Malaysia External Trade Development Corporation (MATRADE), were also part of the Prime Minister’s delegation. Through this platform, the team met one-on-one with several Indonesian companies to explore potential business and investment opportunities.

The official visit of YAB Dato’ Seri Anwar Ibrahim has fortified Malaysia’s commitment to enhancing economic cooperation with Indonesia as its long-standing trade and investment partner. Indonesia is Malaysia’s second largest trading partner and the third largest source of foreign direct investment (FDI) within ASEAN. Total trade between Malaysia and Indonesia was approximately US$23 billion in 2021, marking a 45.5 per cent year-on-year (y-o-y) increase compared with 2020. Total trade for 2022, on the other hand, is projected to exceed 30 per cent y-o-y growth compared with 2021 as both countries have fully reopened their borders, which will ensure more bilateral flow of goods and services. Malaysia’s major exports to Indonesia in 2022 were petroleum products, chemicals and chemical products and electrical and electronics (E&E) products.

In taking the relationship forward, the Malaysian and Indonesian Governments will identify important and critical industries that are scalable, including pharmaceuticals, aerospace, palm oil processing, consumer goods as well as defence and security. In addition, Malaysia and Indonesia will continue leveraging the intra-ASEAN supply chain and intra-ASEAN cooperation through platforms such as the ASEAN Trade in Goods Agreement (ATIGA) and the ASEAN Comprehensive Investment Agreement (ACIA).

MIDA is poised to support MITI’s role in facilitating more mutual cross-border investments between Malaysia and Indonesia. As Malaysia’s principal investment promotion and development agency, MIDA will assume its role in encouraging and facilitating local and foreign companies to undertake investment projects in the manufacturing and selected services sectors in Malaysia. MIDA has also recently expanded its role to facilitate local companies to grow their business operations and undertake cross-border investments. MIDA will assist local companies in identifying potential business opportunities and partners in the host countries. Through its Domestic Investment Coordination Platform (DICP), MIDA continues to facilitate SMEs to expand   and compete, among others, by identifying potential sources of funding, supporting technology adoption, strengthening research capability and linking the companies with business partners. In assuming the role of facilitating cross-border investments, MIDA hopes to further integrate Malaysia’s local companies within the international supply chain.

9 January 2023 – ASIC Offshore & Marine Sdn Bhd (ASIC) signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with PT Dok Dan Perkapalan Kodja Bahari (PESERO) (PT DKB) entering into a strategic partnership mainly in the areas of Oil and Gas and Maritime Industry specializing in Design and Engineering, New Building, Repair and Maintenance and Ship Management. The MoU signing ceremony was attended by MITI, MATRADE and MIDA.