VOI - Voice of Indonesia | RRI - Radio Republik Indonesia

Indonesia and Panama aim to improve bilateral relations in the business and investment sectors, although currently both - like other countries in the world - are still in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic, according to the ambassadors of the two countries.

"Even though we are still facing a difficult situation due to the COVID-19 pandemic, we must remain optimistic and creative to explore and enhance cooperation, especially in the economic sector," said the Indonesian Ambassador to Panama, Sukmo Harsono, in a webinar of the RI-Panama business forum, Thursday (10/12) evening WIB.

Indonesia, said Sukmo, is now offering the convenience of doing business and investing through the ratification of the Omnibus Law on Work Creation, by providing significant improvements to the business climate and bringing this country into international competition.

"This new law [...] will reduce weaknesses in doing business in Indonesia, namely by simplifying the land acquisition process, loosening restrictions on foreign investment, improving labor regulations, and providing more incentives for free trade zones," said Sukmo.

The Ambassador of Panama to Indonesia, Manuel Saturno, said that Indonesia is the largest economy in Southeast Asia which is vital to the Panamanian economy, as well as a multimodal logistics platform to generate profits for the country.

"On the other hand, we also want to increase Panama's presence in Indonesia, namely by bringing our affordable products, such as fruits, seafood, coffee, and others," said Saturno.

Panama itself offers its country as a "gateway into the American region for Indonesia [...] which can be used to gain profits for Indonesia by redistributing products to the region more quickly and efficiently."

The total value of trade between Indonesia and Panama has fluctuated, which tends to decrease. The figures for 2015 to 2019, respectively, in US dollars, were 161.86 million, 150.92 million, 129.95 million, 148.57 million, 112.85 million, based on official data from the Indonesian Government.

The COVID-19 pandemic has further reduced the value of trade between the two countries this year, with a record that from January to October 2020 amounting to 78.85 million US dollars, or decreased by 17.6 percent compared to the same period in 2019, which amounted to US $ 95.67 million, based on data compiled by the Indonesian Chamber of Commerce. (Antaranews)

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