Indonesia seeks to tilt trade balance with Kenya in new plan

Kenya national chamber of commerce and industry--Mombasa County chairman. James Mureu makes a point during press conference at his office in Mombasa. The chamber requests the county Government to be cognisant of the fact the business environment has been adversely affected by high taxes charged in the last Finance act 2013. Business men have also faced many challenges with insecurity topping the list. 29th September 2014. Picture by Omondi Onyango

A delegation of Indonesian businessmen has pitched camp in the country to scout for business opportunities.

The delegation, which is being hosted by the Kenya National Chamber of Commerce and Industry (KNCCI), on Friday expressed interest in putting money in various sectors such as infrastructure, finance, textiles, energy and tourism.

The group said Kenya showed much promise in these sectors compared to other African countries.

STRICT REGIME

Speaking on behalf of the delegation, Indonesian vice Minister for Foreign Affairs A M Fachir said other Asian countries such as China and India had proved how worthwhile it was to do business in Kenya.

Mr Fachir, however, decried Kenya’s strict tariff regime in its trade with Indonesia, but said he hoped the Government would review the same to ease investment in the country.

“The value of our bilateral trade is still far from reaching its full potential. Trade between us stands at Sh4.59 trillion. This is a relatively low for both countries, which have total combined GDP of nearly $924 billion (Indonesia - Sh861 billion, Kenya - Sh63 billion),” he said.

KNCCI Vice Chairman James Mureu lauded the Indonesian Government for its interest to invest in Kenya, terming the country Africa’s trading hub.

“Kenya has potential and is entirely ready for the collaboration between the two governments,” he said. The balance of trade between the two countries is largely in favour of Indonesia.