The second meeting of the Intergovernmental Commission on Economic Cooperation between Kazakhstan and Indonesia took place in Astana after a 13-year break. The Kazakh delegation was led by Deputy Prime Minister – Minister of National Economy Serik Zhumangarin, and the Indonesian delegation by Coordinating Minister for Economic Affairs Airlangga Hartarto.

The meeting was attended by representatives of state bodies of both countries, the National Chamber of Entrepreneurs “Atameken”, diplomatic missions, and the business community. The parties discussed issues of trade, investment, transport and logistics, energy, digitalization, agriculture, standardization, and tourism.

“Indonesia is one of Kazakhstan’s key economic partners in Southeast Asia. We are interested in taking our relations to a new qualitative level. There are currently 26 agreements in force between our countries in trade and economic, cultural, and other spheres,” Serik Zhumangarin noted.

The Deputy Prime Minister separately emphasized the importance of the Agreement on Free Trade between the EAEU and Indonesia signed in December last year.

“This is a strategic bridge between the EAEU and the largest economy in ASEAN, which opens new growth points for exports and industrial cooperation,” Serik Zhumangarin stressed.

Kazakhstan proposed expanding the range of mutual supplies and activating existing trade channels. According to the Kazakh side, the export potential for 20 commodity items exceeds $60 million.

Promising areas include supplies of Kazakh ferroalloys for Indonesia’s steel and automotive industries, as well as increased grain exports.

“Indonesia’s wheat import demand this year may rise to 13 million tons. Kazakhstan is ready to offer stable supplies of high-quality wheat with high gluten content for Indonesia’s flour milling industry,” Serik Zhumangarin noted.

Special attention was paid to cooperation in halal products. Kazakhstan expressed readiness to increase exports of beef, lamb, and canned meat to the Indonesian market.

As an example of export potential, Serik Zhumangarin presented the project of LLP “Kaip Ata”.

“Today we are one of the leading suppliers of beef in Central Asia. Two years ago, we studied the experience of our Australian colleagues and implemented it in Kazakhstan. As a result, we have created the largest full-cycle cluster in the country with a herd of 50,000 head,” he emphasized.

The Indonesian side confirmed its interest in expanding cooperation in food security, the halal industry, and energy.

“We note progress on a number of bilateral initiatives, including cooperation in investment, energy, digital transformation, tourism, standardization, healthcare, and interaction between business communities,” Airlangga Hartarto emphasized.

Indonesia also supported accelerating the ratification of the Free Trade Agreement between Indonesia and the EAEU and proposed the creation of an Indonesia–EAEU Business Council.

In the field of standardization, the parties discussed the preparation of a memorandum between the Kazakh Institute of Standardization and Metrology and the National Standardization Agency of Indonesia.

Special emphasis was placed on the development of transport connectivity between Central and Southeast Asia. The parties discussed multimodal transport routes and a pilot project for container rail transportation via the Lianyungang corridor.

Tourist exchange continues to grow. The number of tourists from Kazakhstan to Indonesia increased from 8,200 in 2023 to 24,400 in 2025.

Following the meeting, the Protocol of the Second Meeting of the Kazakhstan–Indonesia Intergovernmental Commission on Economic Cooperation was signed.

For reference: The basis of Kazakhstan’s exports to Indonesia consists of ferroalloys, components for information systems, processed leather, geodetic instruments, metal and rubber products. Kazakhstan imports televisions, monitors, construction equipment, palm oil, footwear, musical instruments, and other industrial products from Indonesia.

#Agriculture #International Cooperation #Logistics #Serik Zhumangarin #Trade and economic cooperation #Transport

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