The Minister of Trade of the Republic of Indonesia, Zulkifli Hasan, and the Minister of International Trade, Export Promotion, Small Business and Canadian Economic Development, Mary Ng, held a meeting on the sidelines of the series of meetings Trade Ministerials for Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation.
Earlier, Indonesian Trade Minister Zulkifli Hasan urged Canada to jointly increase its commitment to expedite the conclusion of negotiations on a Comprehensive Economic Cooperation Agreement between Indonesia and Canada (ICA-CEPA).
Trade Minister Zulkifli Hasan said this during his meeting with Canadian Minister for International Trade, Export Promotion, Small Business and Economic Development Mary Ng today, Thursday (5/25). ) in Detroit, United States of America (USA).
“I am optimistic that efforts to increase trade and investment between Indonesia and Canada can be achieved through the Indonesia-Canada CEPA. Indonesia and Canada had a constructive and meaningful discussion on the text of the agreement,” Trade Minister Zulkifli Hasan said.
The bilateral meeting took place on the sidelines of a series of Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation Ministers Responsible for Trade/APEC MRT, on May 25-26, 2023.
During the meeting, Indonesia and Canada agreed that IA-CEPA could be completed soon and bring major benefits to the economies of both countries.
Negotiations Indonesia and Canada completed the fourth round of negotiations for ICA-CEPA from February 20-24, 2023 in Bandung. The two countries are currently preparing to hold the fifth round of ICA-CEPA negotiations at the end of May 2023 in Ottawa, Canada.
Meanwhile, Minister Mary Ng said Canada was pushing for recognition of halal certification with Indonesia to be completed immediately. Trade Minister Zulkifli Hasan said he would push for the halal certification process and demanded access to Canadian agricultural products from Indonesia.
Minister Mary Ng also congratulated Indonesia on its success as host of the G20 in 2022. Canada also requested Indonesia’s support for the Indo-Pacific Economic Framework for Prosperity (IPEF).
Commerce Minister Zulkifli Hasan said Indonesia has a downstream policy in the mining sector. Minister Mary Ng responded that Canada is one of the world’s leading mining nations. With the mining sector prioritizing aspects of innovation, sustainability and global supply chains, Minister Mary is optimistic that Indonesia and Canada can establish cooperation in mining products by value-added endorsement.
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