Nigeria-Indonesia trade exceeds $3bn a year, envoy says
Trade between Nigeria and Indonesia has consistently exceeded $3bn annually, Indonesian Ambassador Bambang Suharto said, describing Nigeria as one of Indonesia’s leading African trading partners. Officials from both countries called for wider cooperation in manufacturing, energy, agriculture, technology, infrastructure, education and other sectors to increase investment and strengthen local production.
Nigeria and Indonesia’s bilateral trade has consistently exceeded $3bn annually, Indonesian Ambassador to Nigeria Bambang Suharto said, while urging both countries to expand economic cooperation. Suharto said the trade relationship had made Nigeria one of Indonesia’s foremost trading partners in Africa. He described Nigeria as an important energy supplier contributing to Indonesia’s energy security, while Indonesian goods had become common among Nigerian consumers and businesses.
The ambassador added that some Indonesian products were now being produced locally in Nigeria with the involvement of Nigerian workers. He said this demonstrated that the relationship could deliver benefits beyond the exchange of goods. Suharto said the two countries represented a combined market of more than 550 million people, with young populations, active businesses and substantial natural and human resources.
He said this created opportunities to expand trade, investment, technology transfers and employment. He also said Indonesian companies operating in Nigeria were supporting the relationship through investment, job creation and corporate social responsibility initiatives. Indonesia, he added, attached importance to educational and cultural exchanges, including scholarship programmes that had enabled Nigerian students to study in Indonesia.
Nigeria’s Permanent Secretary at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Ambassador Dunoma Umar Ahmed, said there was considerable scope to deepen the partnership. He identified Indonesia’s experience in industrialisation, manufacturing, digital transformation, infrastructure, agriculture, maritime development and small-business growth as areas of interest to Nigeria. Ahmed called for stronger links between private companies, chambers of commerce, financial institutions and business communities.
He listed agriculture, agro-processing, manufacturing, energy, infrastructure, pharmaceuticals, the digital economy and creative industries as sectors with potential, while urging both sides to address market access, business information and contract facilitation.
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