Indonesian President Joko Widodo asked for the Philippines’ support on “special safeguard measures” on Indonesian coffee products during his bilateral meeting with President Marcos in Malacañan Palace on Wednesday, Jan. 10.
Indonesian President Joko Widodo delivers his statement after a bilateral meeting with President Ferdinand 'Bongbong' Marcos Jr. on Wednesday, Jan. 10, 2024. (PPA Pool/Ryan Baldemor)
Though he did not explicitly call for the lifting of the special safeguard duties (SGS) imposed by the country on coffee products, especially instant coffee, his remark came less than a year after Jakarta raised questions about the SGS in a World Trade Organization (WTO) Committee on Agriculture meeting.
“In the field of economy, in order to enhance trade, we agreed to continue to open market access and Indonesia seeks the Philippines' support related to special safeguard measures on Indonesian coffee products,” Widodo, who is on a three-day official visit, said in the Leaders’ Statement after the meeting.
He added that Indonesia is also “committed to keep market access open for Philippines’ agriculture commodities.”
In March 2023, the Philippines maintained that it will continue slapping the SGS on coffee products that fall below the Philippines’ trigger price of P203.74 per kilogram as this mechanism aims to protect local farmers and products.
Jakarta has long been complaining about Manila’s imposition of SGS on coffee products, claiming that the measure has “adversely affected” Indonesia’s exports of these products to the Philippines.
It also said that the trigger prices for coffee products should only be P154.85 per kilogram, and not P203.74 per kilogram.
According to Indonesian Ambassador to the Philippines Agus Widjojo earlier, bilateral trade between the two countries is at $9.5 billion as of 2021.
Indonesian exports amount to $8.6 billion, while imports from the Philippines is at $1.2 billion, he shared.
Meanwhile, the Indonesian president also expressed “appreciation” for the Philippines’ “trust” in Indonesian state-owned enterprises (SOEs) “in the construction of the Philippines' important infrastructure and for the groundbreaking of the North-South Commuter Railway Project which is important to be accelerated.”
Widodo also addressed the importance of cooperation among members of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN). Both Indonesia and the Philippines are founding members of the Southeast Asian regional bloc.
“Third, regarding our region, we agreed on the importance of strengthening ASEAN unity and centrality that is not merely a jargon and for ASEAN to continue to uphold the principles of international law and become a positive force for peace, stability, and prosperity,” he stressed.
Widodo’s three-day official trip to Manila includes a visit to factories of instant coffee producer Kopiko Philippines Corp. and carrageenan supplier W Hydrocolloids Inc.
He is set to visit Brunei and Vietnam next.