Kenya officially opens embassy in Indonesia, signs MoU

The Government of Kenya has officially opened its Embassy in Jarkata, Indonesia.

According to a statement Thursday, the inauguration of the embassy marks a momentous occasion and an accomplishment in the diplomatic contacts established prior to Kenya’s Independence.

Indonesia was first in opening its diplomatic mission in Nairobi in 1982.

The ceremony was graced by Cabinet Secretary ministry of Foreign Affairs Amb Raychelle Omamo, Mrs. Retno Lestari Marsudi, Minister for Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Indonesia, representatives of Kenyans in the Diaspora and a host of both Kenya and Indonesia private and government officials.

“The opening of this Mission is no doubt a momentous occasion, because it marks an incredible milestone in our bilateral relations since the establishment of diplomatic relations in 1982.  It is, therefore, with deep appreciation that I commend the Government of Indonesia for the immense support and facilitation extended to us towards the establishment of this Mission”. Said the Cabinet Secretary Amb Raychelle Omamo.

Indonesia Foreign Minister H.E Retno Marsudi said;  “The opening of the embassy is an important momentum for the bilateral relations between Kenya and Indonesia to bring our two nations closer. The new mission is expected to bring consular services closer for all Kenyans resident in Indonesia. In addition, the new embassy is expected to help our two countries to reinvigorate our bilateral relations and add the momentum in our bilateral collaborations.”

The relations between the two countries has broadened over the years with cooperation in various fields that include Trade and Investment; Agriculture and Fisheries; Education and Human Resource Skills Development; Defence and Security; ICT and Industrialization; Affordable Health Care; Housing and Urban Development; Culture and Tourism, Energy and Mineral Resources.

As an emerging economic power, Indonesia is a high-potential partner in Kenya’s national development agenda, particularly in trade and industrialization, security and police cooperation, finance, investments, universal healthcare, and urban development.

Indonesia views Kenya not only as a promising market but also as a gateway to the East African Region. Indonesia is also a promising market for a variety of Kenya’s exports.

Kenya’s main exports to Indonesia include tea, coffee and coffee substitutes, tobacco, vegetables, leather, and metallic salts.

With the establishment of a fully- fledged diplomatic mission, Kenya is keen to strengthen the relationship and increase the value of its exports to Indonesia by shifting its export base from agricultural and mineral-based raw materials to value-added manufactured products and is seeking public and private partnerships with Indonesia in technology transfer, capacity building, training and investment in the entire value chain.

” We shall work to ensure that we have regular political consultations to strengthen the relations between Kenya and Indonesia to ensure we increase investment opportunities for the benefit of the people of the two countries. We hope that the opening of this mission will lead to the realization of the potential that exists between our two countries,”  CS Omamo said.

In the recent past Government of Kenya has commissioned the opening of six new resident diplomatic mission and consulates globally as “we seek to expand our global footprint,strengthening our bilateral engagement and people-to-people interactions as imperative and as we promote mutually beneficial international cooperation” said Omamo.

Kenya and Indonesia have a long historical relationship that dates back to the first Asian- African or Afro- Asian Conference in 1955 in Bandung, Indonesia. In April 2018, Kenya participated in the first-ever Asia – Africa Forum (IAF) in Bali, Indonesia.

According to the CS, the opening of the embassy re-affirms the government’s desire and commitment to continue working closely with Indonesia to strengthen their bonds of friendship and cooperation.

The Cabinet secretary expressed her gratitude to the Government of Indonesia for the support extended during the opening of the Embassy and looked forward to a vibrant and fruitful collaboration between the two countries.

Earlier, the CS together with Mrs. Marsudi held extensive consultations during the Inaugural Session of the Kenya-Indonesia Joint Bilateral Consultations.

The core objective of the consultations was the need to deliberately strengthen cooperation,and explore new opportunities for collaboration in various fields including Trade and Investments,Manufacturing sector, food and Nutrition, Universal healthcare and Affordable Housing and Agribusiness, Education and Human Resource Skills Development; Defence and Security; and ICT for the benefit of the people of the two countries.

MoU’s Signed 

During the visit,  five legal instruments were signed to promote collaboration between various organizations in the two countries.

They signed an MoU between the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Indonesia and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Kenya on Cooperation in Diplomatic Capacity Building. The MoU seeks to reinforce the partnership between the two countries by establishing the framework for sustainable cooperation in the training of the Indonesian and Kenyans diplomats, based on reciprocity and mutual benefit of both parties.

The other was an MoU between the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Indonesia and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Kenya on Regular Diplomatic Consultations which provides guidelines for conducting regular diplomatic consultations between the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Kenya and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Indonesia.

Others included; MoU between Indonesia’s News Agency (ANTARA) and the Kenya Broadcasting Corporation (KBC) on News Exchange and Technical Cooperation signed by Dr. Naim Bilal, the Managing Director Kenya Broadcasting Corporation which seeks to promote economic and socio-cultural relations between the two countries through news exchange cooperation on the basis of equality and reciprocal.

Patrick Nyangweso, Chief Operating Officer for KNCCI  signed an MoU between the Kenya National Chamber of Commerce and Industry (KNCCI) and Indonesia Chamber of Commerce and Industry (KADIN). The purpose of the MOU is to establish the principles and basis of facilitating cooperation between the parties to advance the common interest, in a mutually beneficial manner, business relations between the members and stakeholders representing both countries.

MoU between University of Nairobi and Universitas Padjadjaran on academic research and collaboration has also been concluded for signing by the University VC Prof Stephen Kiama and MoU between UMMA University of Kajiado, Kenya and Syarif Hidayatullah State Islamic University Jakarta (UIN KAJARTA) for collaboration was also concluded.

Amb. Raychelle Omamo said Kenya views Indonesia as the strong pillar in the South and will be a strong partner on development matters.

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