After years of negotiation, the Indonesia-Australia Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (IA-CEPA) has passed its final hurdle. The agreement was ratified by the Indonesian Parliament last Thursday.
“The ³Ô¹ÏÍøÕ¾ Farmers’ Federation is extremely pleased to see this agreement finalised,” NFF President Fiona Simson said.
“This agreement represents a huge win for Australian farmers as well as consumers in both countries.
Ms Simson said the importance of the Indonesian market could not be overstated.
“Food consumption in Indonesia is predicted to have quadrupled by 2050.
“This agreement provides cattle, beef, grains, sheep meat, dairy, sugar, horticulture and a range of other commodities with significant new export opportunities.
“We would like to express our sincere gratitude to the Australian Government, and particularly to Trade Minister, Simon Birmingham, who has continued to work with his Indonesian counterpart to ensure this agreement came to fruition.
“After years of hard work, the Australian Government has achieved a deal which will materially strengthen our trade relationship with a critically important neighbour.
“As an industry which derives 70 per cent of its earnings from exports, ambitious free trade agreements like IA-CEPA are absolutely key to the strength of our sector” Ms Simson said.
“One of the key goals of the NFF’s 2030 Roadmap – our blueprint for growing the industry to $100 billion over the next 10 years – is lowering the average tariff faced by agricultural exports to 5 per cent. The deal with Indonesia puts us one step closer to achieving this goal.
“With many Australian farmers are doing it tough at the moment, this deal provides a welcome morale boost,” Ms Simson said.
