Rini M. Sumarno Soewandi – Minister of Trade, Indonesia

The Middle East has been a traditional trade partner of Indonesia since time immemorial. Religious and cultural ties between the Middle East countries and Indonesia go back around 600 years and provide a strong foundation to continuing trade ties. Indonesia values the time-tested friendship it enjoys with the nations of the Middle East and believes there is a great opportunity at this time to boost bilateral trade ties. For this reason, Indonesia is holding its first international SOLO EXHIBITION in the United Arab Emirates. Hopefully, this exhibition will result in further strengthening the link between the business communities of Indonesia and the Middle East.

In its long and eventful history, Indonesia has overcome many challenges that threatened to become stumbling blocks to the country’s economic growth and development. In a bid to overcome the challenges of the new millennium, the government of Indonesia has embarked on a progressive drive to maximise the opportunity from economic globalisation. We have been able to capitalise on the new opportunities in the ever-changing world of international commerce through the production of an increasingly wide range of world-class products at competitive prices. This has enabled Indonesian companies to compete favourably in the global marketplace. I invite business people from the Middle East to explore new avenues of economic potential available through co-operation with their counterparts in Indonesia.

Good results have been achieved by Indonesia from an aggressive promotional campaign in the Middle East countries. Trade between these countries and Indonesia has been registering unprecedented growth in recent years. I sincerely believe that the increased trade and cultural exchanges are a good barometer of friendship and co-operation and highlight the confidence and cordiality of these relations. Indeed, the future holds great promise. The level of cooperation achieved so far gives me confidence in predicting that the coming years will see further growth in bi-lateral relations between the Middle East countries and Indonesia.

In conclusion, let me take this opportunity to congratulate the publishers of this special magazine for promoting direct trade between Indonesia and Middle East companies by providing information that is relevant and timely. It is my hope that the information provided in this publication will help us to further strengthen the fruitful relationship with our business partners in the Middle East.