ISLAMABAD: Pakistan and Indonesia on Tuesday agreed to expedite efforts to transform their existing Preferential Trade Agreement (PTA) into a Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (CEPA) by 2027, marking a significant step towards strengthening bilateral economic ties.
The announcement came during a meeting between Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif and Indonesian Minister for Investment and Downstream Industry, Rosan Roeslani who led a five-member delegation to Islamabad.
Prime Minister Sharif welcomed the delegation and conveyed his warm regards to Indonesian President Prabowo Subianto.
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He particularly emphasised the success of President Prabowo’s visit to Pakistan last year, which had a positive impact on the two countries’ diplomatic and economic relations.
During the meeting, the prime minister reiterated the need for the longstanding and growing relationship between Pakistan and Indonesia, underscoring that the partnership was rooted in decades of brotherly cooperation.
He highlighted that both countries had achieved significant milestones in their diplomatic ties, particularly with the successful visit of President Prabowo to Pakistan last year, which provided a renewed focus on economic collaboration.
PM Sharif also recalled his recent discussions with President Prabowo at the 58th World Economic Forum, where both leaders had deliberated on ways to enhance bilateral economic cooperation, including the potential of establishing a sovereign wealth fund.
Pakistan, PM Sharif noted, was keen on leveraging Indonesia’s experience in managing such funds as a model to further strengthen its own economic framework.
Minister Roeslani expressed his gratitude to the Pakistani government for their warm welcome and hospitality. He conveyed President Prabowo’s best regards and assured that Indonesia remained fully committed to deepening its economic ties with Pakistan. He emphasised that both countries shared mutual interests in enhancing trade and investment and moving forward with greater economic cooperation in the years ahead.
Roeslani also reiterated Indonesia’s strong support for the transition of the PTA into a CEPA, noting that this would significantly benefit both economies by removing trade barriers and facilitating more extensive exchanges in goods, services, and investments.
Both sides reaffirmed Pakistan’s commitment to expanding its economic relations with Indonesia and agreed to continue working together to implement the terms of the PTA and pave the way for the successful establishment of a CEPA by the target year of 2027.
The meeting was attended by several senior officials, including Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar, Federal Minister for Commerce Jam Kamal Khan, Federal Minister for Finance and Revenue Muhammad Aurangzeb, Minister of State for Finance and Railways Bilal Azhar Kiani, Haroon Akhtar and other senior officials.
Copyright Business Recorder, 2026
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