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ollowing President Joko “Jokowi” Widodo’s orders to explore non-traditional trade markets, the government has moved to facilitate business-to-business talks between Indonesia and 15 countries joined in Caribbean Community (CARICOM).

Foreign Affairs Ministry director for American and European intraregional and interregional cooperation Masni Eriza told The Jakarta Post that penetrating the CARICOM market was part of the government’s larger plan to expand Indonesia’s global business network by helping local businesses enter non-traditional markets.

“The Indonesian government is trying to sign comprehensive economic agreements with regions around the world […] and CARICOM is, for sure, next on our list,” he said on the sidelines of an Indonesia — CARICOM seminar in Tangerang.

Indonesia currently does limited business with CARICOM as indicated by the absence of a single Indonesian-owned factory in the region, even though Indonesian products such as processed foods, batik textiles and furniture have long been circulating the local market.

Masni said that one advantage of CARICOM was that Indonesia could easily access the entire regional market through just one gateway country because the region was economically integrated under the CARICOM Single Market and Economy (CSME) agreement.

Choosing the gateway, however, is a matter of which Caribbean country offers the best deal for Indonesia. Suriname, for example, has stronger cultural ties and the former Dutch colony is still home to many ethnically Javanese residents, while Trinidad and Tobago has one of the largest harbors and Jamaica has one of the strongest economies in the region.

During the seminar, Indonesian Ambassador to CARICOM Dominicus Supratikto highlighted some of the region’s other economic advantages such as its 15 million-strong population, its rich natural resources and the 40 million annual foreign tourists.

“Indonesia has a strong textile industry, so imagine how much Indonesia could get just by exporting beachwear to the region,” he said.

He advised the handful of Indonesian businessmen present at the seminar to secure a solid business partner before entering the CARICOM market because it would help them navigate the region’s distinct business environment.

Sherida Sonja Nabi, sales and marketing director of Surinamese distributor Tropical Group, concurred with Supratikto’s advice saying that exporters were the ideal partners for prospective Indonesian companies.

She said that the most suitable business sectors in the CARICOM for Indonesian companies included, among others, tourism, hospitality, manufacturing, health and education.

Meanwhile, Faron Lawrence, head of the Saint Kitts and Nevis Chamber of Commerce, said that the country was also open to investment and business relations with Indonesia.

He said Indonesian investment would open up job opportunities whereas Saint Kitts’ various trade agreements with major markets — such as the United States, Latin America and Europe — would lower trade tariffs for Indonesian products aiming to enter those major markets.

“If Indonesian crude palm oil, for example, is refined at Saint Kitts, then the palm oil would only cost US$6 to enter the American market compared to the $10 if Indonesia sold it directly into America,” he said

He added that he was trying to cement a business conduit between the two countries by convincing the Indonesian Chamber of Commerce and Industry (Kadin) to establish a memorandum of understanding with his organization and for the Indonesian Ambassador to CARICOM to open an honorary consul in Saint Kitts. (nor)