TEMPO.CO, Jakarta - Indonesian President Joko "Jokowi" Widodo met with New Zealand Prime Minister Christopher Luxon, at the Park Hyatt Hotel in Melbourne, on Tuesday, March 5, on the sidelines of the ASEAN-Australia Summit. The leaders engaged in a bilateral meeting to bolster collaboration between Indonesia and New Zealand by deliberating on various strategic issues.

According to a written statement from the Presidential Secretariat’s Press Bureau, one of the topics discussed was the plummet in trade value between the two nations by as much as 18 percent last year.

Jokowi emphasized the need to generate new opportunities to enhance interaction between business and trade players, including within the halal sector. He also welcomed Luxon's scheduled visit with a trade mission to Jakarta this year.

“I am confident that this will spur more trade and economic cooperation between the two nations,” he said.

The trade balance between Indonesia and New Zealand declined from US$2,128.7 million in 2022 to US$1,728 million in 2023. Several targets have been established, including augmenting bilateral trade by NZ$4 billion in 2024.

Jokowi also appreciated the close geothermal energy cooperation between the two countries, which included a funding commitment of NZ$15.6 million to the Indonesia-Aoteroa New Zealand Geothermal Energy Program (PINZ).

“I hope the investment can be further escalated, especially to support the acceleration of geothermal energy development and energy transition efforts in Indonesia,” said Jokowi.

Meanwhile, Luxon said on his X (formerly Twitter) account that he was pleased to meet Jokowi in Melbourne and discuss strategic partnerships, trade, and the two countries’ relations.

“Indonesia matters, big time, to New Zealand,” Luxon said. “I also spoke with him about the need for an urgent release of New Zealand’s Phillip Mehrtens held hostage in Papua.”

During the meeting, Jokowi invited Luxon to attend the 10th World Water Forum in Bali in May this year. The summit will address issues related to water and sanitation amid the escalating impact of global climate change.

DANIEL A. FAJRI

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