Yemisi Izuora
Operators in Nigeria’s agriculture sector would be traveling to Indonesia to understudy that country’s agribusiness development.
The Indonesian embassy in Nigeria is to facilitate an agribusiness trip to Indonesia for Nigerian agribusiness people.
Indonesian Ambassador to Nigeria, M. Harry Purwanto said.
“In coming May the Indonesian embassy in Abuja will launch a program of a business trip to Indonesia to facilitate Nigerian agribusiness people,”.
The ambassador was speaking to a group of Nigerian business leaders of the Plateau Chamber of Commerce, Industry, Mining, and Agriculture (PLACCIMA) in Jos.
“The business meeting participants expressed interest in studying how Indonesia had successfully developed agribusiness and agriculture,” the ambassador said.
He said meanwhile, in July 2017, the Indonesian government also will hold the “Indonesia Agriculture Support Program”, a training program for Nigerian farmers.
At the business meeting, Ambassador Purwanto also invited Nigerian business leader from the PLACCIMA to take part in the Trade Expo Indonesia (TEI) 2017 in Jakarta, on October 11-15.
He said around 20 Nigerian business people from the state of Plateau had confirmed participation in the TEI this year. Others asked for more information about TEI, to be facilitated by the embassy in Abuja or by the Indonesian Trade Promotion Center (ITPC).
He said last year, around 500 business leaders from 11 West African countries took part in TEI committing a total investment and trade worth US$129 million.
Bilateral trade between Indonesia and Nigeria in 2016 was valued at US$1.6 billion, and during the period Indonesia exported US$310 million worth of non-oil/gas commodities to that oil-rich African country.
The business meeting was organized by the Indonesian embassy and the PLACCIMA. The meeting was part of the program of economic diplomacy of the Indonesian embassy to open wider access to the potential Western African market.
Indonesia, chairman of the Indian Ocean Rim Association (IORA) is keen on expanding economic cooperation and market to the African continent. IORA groups 21 countries including a number of African countries not including Nigeria.
