VOI - Voice of Indonesia | RRI - Radio Republik Indonesia

Indonesian garment companies and micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs) of South African cooperate to establish a partnership company, Pan Africa in the field of textiles. Indonesian Ambassador to South Africa, Salman Al Farisi, as conveyed in a written statement from the Indonesian Embassy in Pretoria received by Antara News Agency in Jakarta on Monday (12/4) stated that the establishment of the factory involving local resources and wisdom is the most obvious bilateral cooperation.

Besides, Ambassador Salman when inaugurating the operation of the Indonesia-South Africa partnership company, Pan Africa in the business center of the Johannesburg business and commercial area stated that with the emphasis on the aspects of empowering small businesses and women, this kind of partnership model can be worked on in non-traditional markets in the region.  Pan Africa is a joint venture between Indonesia's leading garment company, Pan Brother and South African MSMEs, Faithfulness.

Ambassador Salman Al Farisi really appreciated the establishment of Pan Africa which he called an ideal form of mutually beneficial partnership.  In its operation, Pan Africa will import semi-finished personal protective equipment (PPE) garments from Indonesia and then complete the processing at a factory in Johannesburg. Head of Johannesburg Indonesian Trade Promotion Center (ITPC), Anggun Paramita Mahdi believes that the successful establishment of the partnership company can be a good precedent and pilot project for other Indonesian products, particularly the PPE to enter to the South African market.

Meanwhile, Deputy Managing Director of Pan Brothers Indonesia, Anne Patricia Sutanto, in her online remarks expressed her gratitude for the assistance and support of the Indonesian Embassy in Pretoria and ITPC Johannesburg in the initial process of establishing Pan Africa which was done remotely.  She also expressed the same hope that the opening of this factory would be the beginning of greater cooperation in the future.  The inauguration of the Pan Africa operation was a positive achievement by the Indonesian representatives amid the Covid-19 pandemic.  The Indonesian Embassy in Pretoria is committed to being continuously optimistic in carrying out Indonesia's economic diplomacy, including in facilitating business relations between Indonesia and South Africa.