Indonesia Corner opens at Landmark Mall

Indonesia’s Ambassador to Qatar, H E Muhammad Basri Sidehabi, on Thursday formally opened the Indonesia Corner at the Landmark Mall in the presence of a number of Qatari businessmen and the Indonesian community in Doha.

Located at the mall’s main lobby, the 9sqm booth, which will be open for at least three months, promotes various Indonesian tourism, trade, and investment opportunities in the form of brochures, books, product samples, videos, and periodic cultural performances. The booth will be open from 10am to 10 pm during Saturday-Thursday, and from 4pm to 10 pm on Fridays.

“The first solo Indonesian products exhibition in Qatar which was held in Doha recently triggered more economic and business collaboration between private sectors in Qatar and Indonesia. The Indonesian Embassy wants to keep the momentum going by continuously intensifying promotion about Indonesia, especially those related to trade, tourism, and investment potential through direct engagement to the Qatari community through the establishment of Indonesia Corner,” Sidehabi said during the event.

He added that relations between Qatar and Indonesia, especially in the economic field, will further strengthen. And the establishment of the Indonesia Corner could also contribute to increasing the trade exchange, tourist visits, and investments between both countries.

Trade relations between Qatar and Indonesia are expected to further increase in the coming years, with business sectors from both sides actively seeking new investment opportunities in both countries. Total trade volume between Qatar and Indonesia increased by 154 percent to $877m in 2018 compared to the previous year, and is expected to triple to $3bn in the next three years.

Talking to The Peninsula on the sidelines of the event, Sidehabi added that Indonesia’s Minister of Trade H E Agus Suparmanto and Minister of Industry Agus Kartasasmita are likely to visit Qatar next year to sustain the current momentum in trade ties between the two countries. The Indonesian embassy in Doha has already sent the invitations to the Ministers, following the success of the Indonesian Trade Expo, wherein as many as 15 trade agreements have been signed between Indonesian companies and their Qatari counterparts.

President of Qatar Indonesia Business Council Farhan Al Sayed, added: “A lot of Qatari businessmen are now travelling to Indonesia to look for opportunities in trade exchange as well as in investments. During the recent Indonesian Expo, there were lots of interests in different brands, in aspects of paper and tire industry. There were also talks in cable businesses and manufacturing opportunities. Also, in the food industry, halal industry is strongly picking up in Indonesia.’’