Korea encouraged to explore Indonesia’s Muslim-majority market
Indonesia stands out as the most lucrative market among the 10 ASEAN member nations when it comes to population.
Firstly, it is ASEAN’s most populous country with over 264 million people.
With roughly 88 percent or 225 million if its people being Muslim, Indonesia also accounts for 13 percent of the worldwide Muslim population and tops the list of countries with the largest Muslim populations.
Under such circumstances, the Indonesian Chamber of Commerce and Industry (KADIN) stepped up its campaign last week for more Korean entrepreneurs to explore the Muslim-majority nation.
The chamber opened its Seoul office on Aug. 28.
Lee Kwang-yeon, who was appointed as the inaugural president of KADIN’s Seoul office, pledged to “make its utmost efforts” to help expanding exchanges in various business fields including tourism, politics, economy, society and culture.
The launch ceremony at a convention center in Yeouido, Seoul, followed a seminar at the National Assembly on Indonesia’s halal policy. Among the seminar speakers was KADIN’s Vice Chairman Johny Waas.
Halal, the Arabic word for “permissible,” refers to a set of religious guidelines and regulations on manufacturing food products including meat, cosmetics and pharmaceutical products among others.
After having the nongovernmental agency MUI to issue halal certificates, the Indonesian government launched a new halal agency called BPJPH which will take over the job on Oct. 17.
Accordingly, there will be revisions on the current halal policy, such as extended validity of halal certification from two years to four years.
The Seoul office and BPJPH will sign a cooperative agreement in October.
“The launch of KADIN’s Seoul office is a part of preparations for the two countries to cope with the new halal policy,” Waas said during the launch ceremony. “The office will also be aimed at helping the two sides to form an official communication channel between their businesses.”
Citing a handful of Korean companies operating in Indonesia, KADIN said they will be able to receive “a wide range of support” from its Seoul office.
“Some of them even had difficulty in tapping into the Indonesian market even after acquiring a halal certificate. The Seoul office is expected to tackle such problem,” KADIN said.
Indonesia is ranked as Korea’s second-largest investment destination in Southeast Asia after Vietnam.
President Moon Jae-in has underscored people-to-people exchanges with ASEAN under the three pillars — namely the 3Ps including peace and prosperity — of his signature New Southern Policy.
Indonesia, according to KADIN, has a huge potential in the international halal market.
For instance, the country imported $338 million worth of cosmetics worldwide in 2018, up by 49.2 percent from 2017.