Tunisia Urges More Balanced Trade with Indonesia and Offers Gateway to Africa

RRI.CO.ID, Jakarta - Tunisia encourages strengthening more balanced trade cooperation with Indonesia. This step was taken amid the increasing trade value between the two countries in recent years.

The Tunisian Ambassador to Indonesia, Mohamed Trabelsi, said that currently Tunisia still relies on several commodities from Indonesia, especially palm oil, which is an important raw material for the industry in his country.

However, Tunisia also hopes that Indonesia can increase imports of Tunisian products such as dates, olive oil, and several other products that are considered to have potential in the Indonesian market.

“We would like to create a balanced business exchange so that import and export should be balanced. So we work together during negotiation between the two sides so that we preserve the interests of both countries,” Trabelsi said to RRI VOI, Tuesday, June 9, 2026.

In addition to promoting trade balance, Tunisia also offers itself as a gateway for Indonesian products and investments to enter the African market. Trabelsi explained that Tunisia's strategic position in North Africa, supported by various free trade agreements with African, Arab, and European countries, makes Tunisia a potential regional hub.

“Tunisia has signed many free trade agreements with African, Arab, and European countries. Our geostrategic position in Northern Africa permits our country to be a hub for Indonesian products and investment in Africa,” he said.

He added that the economic relationship between Indonesia and Tunisia needs to be continuously strengthened by encouraging the involvement of business actors from both countries, including in the fields of investment and trade.

Trabelsi also emphasized the importance of joint efforts to reduce trade barriers and expedite the completion of preferential trade agreements so that the economic relationship between the two countries becomes more sustainable and mutually beneficial.