Indonesian President Joko Widodo and his Italian counterpart Sergio Mattarella discussed measures to foster bilateral economic ties during their talks on November 9 in Jakarta as part of the latter’s ongoing visit to Indonesia.
The visit marks the first by an Italian leader since the two countries set up diplomatic ties in 1949 and also the first trip outside the Mediterranean region of the Italian President.
During their talks, the two sides agreed on four main cooperation fields including leather industry and fashion, infrastructure, tourism and energy, including the use of crude palm oil as a source of renewable energy.
The Italian President expressed his support for the increase of Indonesia’s crude product oil (CPO) export to Italy.
The two leaders also witnessed the signing of memoranda of understanding on visa exemption for diplomatic and service passport holders and tourism cooperation.
They discussed the enhancement of cooperation in maritime, education and pharmaceuticals, while pledging to promote the South-South Cooperation and participate in peacekeeping activities.
During the visit, businesses of both countries are expected to reach deals worth more than 1 billion USD in maritime, infrastructure, banking and energy.
Two-way trade between Indonesia and Italy exceeded 4 billion USD in 2014 while the Italian investment reached more than 63 million USD.
Last year, Italian tourists to Indonesia numbered about 68,000./.