Indonesia and the United States signed on Wednesday a US$750 million agreement to finance trade and infrastructure projects as the countries seek to strengthen economic relations.
The memorandum of understanding (MoU) for the deal was signed in Washington DC by Indonesian Ambassador to the US Muhammad Lutfi and Export-Import Bank of the United States (EXIM) president Kimberly Reed.
The signing was witnessed by Coordinating Maritime Affairs and Investment Minister Luhut Pandjaitan, who is visiting the US this week, along with Deputy Foreign Minister Mahendra Siregar, among others.
Lutfi said the bilateral agreement was expected to help boost prosperity, advance democracy and ensure regional stability for both countries.
“The MoU will further strengthen the economic partnership between Indonesia and the US as part of an effort to expand cooperation in investment and the procurement of goods and services,” he said in a statement.
The agreement also aims to expand opportunities for both countries to work together on government projects and for business development in infrastructure, transportation and energy, among other areas.
Infrastructure development is a main focus of President Joko “Jokowi” Widodo’s administration. The National Development Planning Agency (Bappenas) previously estimated that Indonesia would need $429.7 billion in infrastructure investment from 2020 to 2024, equal to 6.1 percent of the nation’s GDP.
The figure outlined in the MoU is an increase from the previous $500 million deal from 2017 to 2018.
EXIM president Kimberly Reed said the agreement was a “significant achievement” in strengthening the US’ participation in Indonesian development projects in a broad range of sectors, such as energy, infrastructure and information and communications technology.
“This MoU reflects Indonesia’s importance to the US administration,” Reed said in a statement.
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