I

am honored to be the first European Commissioner for Agriculture and Rural Development to visit Indonesia. As EU Commissioner, my job is to support the sustainable development of Europe’s agriculture and ensure the well-being of its rural areas as well as to develop our agricultural exchanges with key partners, such as Indonesia.

I will be accompanied by a business delegation of over 40 European companies and business associations who wish to develop stronger trade and investments in Indonesia.

Some of them are participating in the SIAL Interfood Exhibition on Nov. 9 in Jakarta, which I will officially open. I am glad that Indonesia is hosting this year’s exhibition — the world’s largest food exhibition network with 50 years of experience.

On Nov. 8, I will open the EU-Indonesia Business Dialogue (EIBD) which our regular forum that brings together European and Indonesian business leaders, providing recommendations to policy-makers on how to further promote trade and investment.

The EU, with its 28 member states, population of 500 million and GDP of over US$16 trillion is the largest trading bloc in the world, as well as being the largest exporter and importer of agri-food products.

Today’s EU-Indonesia trade for agricultural products is very important, exceeding €5 billion ($5.57 billion), but these figures hide a much higher potential. Indonesian export figures are mainly driven by palm oil, therefore diversification of exports could certainly increase Indonesian exports, which already show a healthy €3.6 surplus.

The recently launched negotiations for a Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (CEPA) between the EU and Indonesia aim to increase the agricultural trade flows. Without waiting for the conclusion of this agreement, there is great potential to already increase trade. I am here this week to help unlock that potential.

My services and I will play a key role within the EU-Indonesia CEPA negotiations as we expect that Indonesia will be able to take advantage of the agreement to increase its agri-food exports towards the EU and vice versa.

The EU experience in developing a green economy and promoting sustainable rural development can also be valuable to Indonesia.  Through its policies, the EU aims at promoting balanced territorial development, with a focus on rural employment, growth and sustainable communities in rural areas.

Another relevant topic where the EU and Indonesia have a shared interest is the protection and the development of Geographical Indications for food products (for instance Gayo Coffee). Geographical Indications are rural intellectual property — they help to protect, cherish and promote the culture and traditions of food production in our rural areas. Extensive cooperation is already ongoing on this area and this subject will also be part of the CEPA negotiations.

Indonesia is a global power which the EU counts on as a close partner and friend, now and in the future. By working together, we can develop and diversify Indonesia’s agri-food sector and the broader rural economy, creating new jobs across the regions of this amazing land.
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The writer is the European Union Commissioner for Agriculture and Rural Development. He will visit Indonesia on Nov. 7 to 9 accompanied by a large high-level EU business delegation.