VOI - Voice of Indonesia | RRI - Radio Republik Indonesia

Indonesian Vice President Ma'ruf Amin received a visit from Kenyan Foreign Affairs Minister Raychelle Omamo in relation to the opening of the Kenyan Embassy here on Thursday.

"It is also on this day, March 17, 2022, that the Kenya Foreign Affairs Minister will open the Kenyan Embassy in Jakarta," Indonesian Foreign Affairs Minister Retno Marsudi noted at the Vice President’s official residence here.

According to the minister, a number of work commitments between Indonesia and Kenya were discussed during the meeting.

"There were several matters that were discussed during the meeting earlier, including the commitment to strengthen cooperation in trade," she informed.

"Our trade with Kenya has grown very well," she noted.

In 2021, the growth of Indonesia-Kenya's trade surpassed 90 percent while in the last five years, it has risen by more than 15 percent per year.

"The Vice President conveyed the importance of the two countries to continue to strengthen relations in trade," the minister noted.

"In addition, the Vice President also expressed his desire to continue to bolster cooperation in the health and defense industry, as well as collaboration in infrastructure projects in Kenya," she added.

Meanwhile, Omamo described Indonesia as the leader of developing nations, she said.

Moreover, the Kenyan minister said that Indonesia's leadership of the G20 is highly regarded, she added.

Omamo also said she expects Indonesia's leadership of the G20 to be beneficial for developing countries, Marsudi noted.

"Because she knows that Indonesia has a high commitment to voice out the interests of developing nations within the global context," she said.

According to the Indonesian Trade Ministry's data, in the 2017–2021 period, Indonesia-Kenya's trade swelled by 15.73 percent, with non-oil and gas commodities as the primary trade products.

In 2020, Indonesia-Kenya recorded trade worth US$361.68 million, while in 2021, bilateral trade reached US$513.1 million. Moreover, Indonesia's trade surplus was recorded at 71.92 percent. (Antaranews)